No Way Out
by CeCe021
Summary: Brooke Davis has it all. Absolutely gorgeous. Rich. Student Council President. Captain of the Raven Cheerleaders. Girlfriend of Lucas Scott. Aspiring fashion designer. But what happens when it's not all what it seems? He's already cheated on her, but who does she turn to when Lucas starts abusing her? And does she have enough strength to finally say goodbye and follow her heart?
1. Chapter 1

**NO WAY OUT: A ONE TREE HILL FANFIC**

* * *

 ** ** ** **Author's Note: This is my first One Tree Hill fanfic ever! I recently bought all the One Tree Hill seasons off of EBay for like $25 so I've been re-watching them nonstop! Brooke & Nathan have been my favorite characters since day one! I'm sorry, I know there are a lot of people who love Lucas & Peyton, but I'm not one of those. I honestly couldn't stand how Lucas & Peyton did Brooke all those times and I still hold a grudge against Chad for cheating on Sophia (for real & I'm not even sorry) LOL! But Peyton was always whining and wanting people she couldn't have! ********

**I will say that I am a HUGE fan of Nathan & Haley and I honestly think they're marriage goals! BUT, with that being said, I wish more could have gone on between Brooke and Nathan before he got married. Brooke and Nathan are my guilty pleasure.**

 **I'm not even sure if people still read One Tree Hill fanfiction, but here it goes!**

* * *

 **Things to know:**

\- This will be a Brooke & Nathan fic. There will be some Brucas, but Brathan is endgame.

\- There will be mentions of abuse. Obscene language, and detailed sex. So please be advised!

\- Nathan and Lucas are full-blooded brothers. They live in a huge, beautiful house with Karen and Dan. Lucas is the older one by two years.

\- The sex tape happened, but no one knows about it except Brooke and Nathan. Nathan has always crushed on Brooke, but she belongs to Lucas.

\- Lucas and Peyton have already cheated behind Brooke's back once, but she's forgiven them.

\- Brooke's parents aren't around as usual, but they never went broke.

\- Rachel's parents never bought Brooke's house, but she is still present in this fic.

* * *

Brooke laid on her stomach across her queen-sized bed as she flipped through a magazine, her legs crossed in the air behind her. Rachel walked over to the stereo to change the music and smiled when she found the pop song she wanted.

"So what should we do tonight, bitch?" Rachel asked.

Brooke sighed. "I don't know. Don't really feel like doing anything tonight."

"Brooke. It's the last summer bash before school starts. Everyone will be there." She said as she put her hands on her hips.

Brooke sat up and sat the magazine down beside her, "You're right. I just don't want to see Lucas and Peyton."

"Lucas was an ass who didn't deserve you in the first place. And as for Miss Blondie, I can take care of her. Now get your big ass up and get dressed. You're gonna look hot tonight. Make Lucas regret ever letting you go," She said with a smirk.

Brooke halfway smiled, "I'd rather have a big ass than a fake one."

Rachel laughed, "That's the spirit! Now come on. I have a brand new red dress that I can't wait for you to try on."

Brooke looked in the mirror at the red dress she had just slipped into. The dress had two thick lace straps that outlined a square neck that contributed to the shape of the bodycon dress. It had a sheer lace panel under the bust and at the hem revealing skin and showing a little more leg, making the dress anything but innocent. It also had crisscross straps creating an open back. Brooke turned from side to side to check all of her angles. She had to admit this dress was absolutely beautiful and hugged her body quite nicely. She slipped on a pair of black heels and fluffed her hair a bit before applying some clear lipgloss. She always thought natural colored lips were the way to go.

"Damn girl, I think you may have turned me lesbian tonight!" Rachel said from behind her.

"Shut up, bitch! Let's go!" Brooke told her as she grabbed her purse.

* * *

The party was raging by the time they got there. It was insanely crowded and the music was blaring. There were idiots doing keg stands and a few playing beer pong and quarters. Brooke walked in and smiled at all of her classmates as she walked through the room until she spotted Lucas. And as she suspected, he was leaned up against the wall talking to her ex-best friend, Peyton. He hadn't noticed her yet and she backed away to get out of the room, but Rachel grabbed her arm.

"Don't let him win. You running away like a scared bitch gives him the power. Don't let him get the best of you," Rachel whispered in her ear.

Brooke nodded and grabbed a beer, opening it with one swift motion. She looked around and spotted the younger Scott boy in the corner with some petite blonde. Nathan was always trying to get in the next girl's pants. She rolled her eyes and walked over to Bevin and Skills.

"Hey guys!" Brooke said cheerfully.

"Oh my God, Brooke! That dress is HOT!" Bevin gushed.

Brooke smiled at Bevin and was just about to thank her when she heard him speak.

"It is gorgeous on you, Brooke Davis," she heard that all too familiar voice behind her. She closed her eyes hearing his voice. She wasn't ready to deal with him yet. But as Brooke Davis, she had to be tough as nails and plastered a smile on her face as she turned around.

"Lucas," Brooke greeted, her face void of emotion.

"Brooke. You look amazing," He said softly as he squinted his eyes looking at her.

"Yeah. Thanks," she responded.

"Listen, can we talk outside?" He motioned toward the door.

"Don't really have anything to say."

"Brooke, please?" Lucas begged her.

Brooke sighed and headed towards the door. The younger Scott brother's blue eyes watching her every move. He gulped down his beer and tried to pay attention to the blonde he was with, but he honestly could care less. He wanted to know what Lucas wanted to talk to Brooke about. He knew Lucas had cheated on Brooke, hell everyone knew. His brother didn't deserve a girl like Brooke and he hoped she'd be smart enough to not take him back.

"So talk," Brooke said as she sat on the ledge of the back porch.

"I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am," Lucas began, but Brooke cut him off.

"There's no need. Honestly. You two deserve each other," Brooke told him.

Lucas winced at that comment, but it didn't stop him from trying again, "I made a mistake, Brooke. Peyton means nothing to me. I love you."

As he began confessing his love, Peyton decided to walk out the back door interrupting the conversation, "Hey Luke, I was wondering where you ran off to..."

Brooke scoffed and jumped down from the ledge and began to walk down the steps toward the beach. "Please go feed that bullshit somewhere else. I'm not buying it. As for you bitch, he's all yours. Enjoy!"

* * *

Nathan watched as Lucas and Peyton walked back in the door and immediately scanned the room for Brooke, but there was no sign of her.

"Hey Lacey," He started to say to let her down gently.

She squinted and huffed, "My name's Lucy."

"Yeah. Lucy. Listen, I have somewhere I need to be. I'll catch up with you later," He said not even meeting her eyes. He was still scanning the room for Brooke.

"Whatever," Lucy said as she walked off.

He walked through the crowd and walked out the door he had seen Brooke and Lucas walk out of moments before. He walked out onto the porch, but found that she wasn't there. He scanned the patio/pool area, but finally caught a glimpse of that lacy, red dress out on the beach.

He took a deep breath and walked out onto the beach where she was sitting and sat down beside her. Her curly waves were blowing in the wind, her makeup a little smudged from crying. She was holding her black heels by the straps as she sat there on the sand.

"Is this seat taken?" He asked gently.

Brooke scoffed and said sarcastically, "No. But aren't you supposed to be with that blonde? Didn't know blondes were your type by the way."

Nathan noticed her sarcasm and her snarky comments regarding their sex tape, but still sat down beside her, "No. I'm supposed to be out here helping a friend."

Brooke scoffed again, "A friend?!"

Nathan nodded, "Yeah. We're friends aren't we?"

"I don't think us recording ourselves having a drunken sexual encounter equates to us being friends, Nathan. And plus, it was your brother that cheated on me with my best friend. You Scott men are a real piece of work."

"I would like to think of us as friends, Brooke. And as for my brother, he's an ass. I can't believe he did that to you. You didn't deserve it. He's an idiot." Nathan said as he rubbed her back.

"Why does everybody lie? The bad guys lie to get into your bed.. but the good guys.. the good guys lie to get into your heart," Brooke said as she looked over at him, her voice cracking.

Nathan hugged her to his chest as she cried. He caressed her back and ran his fingers through her hair as he held her. He felt like absolute shit. He had always had feeling for Brooke Davis, but never had the courage to actually tell her. Sure, he was Nathan Scott. He could score with just about any girl in school, but Brooke Davis... Brooke Davis was different. Once he found out that she was dating his older brother, he knew all bets were off. She was taken.

Brooke's cries calmed down and she pulled away from Nathan. "I'm sorry. I'm incredibly stupid. Crying all over you like some emotional wreck." Brooke wiped her eyes.

"I'm happy to be here for you, Brooke." Nathan told her softly as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "You know.. there are some good guys still out there. You deserve that."

Brooke smiled softly at him and stood up, dusting her red dress free of sand. She held her hand out to him and helped him stand as well.

"Thank you." Brooke whispered.

"It's no problem, Brooke," He replied as he walked beside her towards the party.

"And just so you know.. brunettes will always be my type," He whispered in her ear and walked up the stairs to return to the party, leaving her behind to watch him walk away.

She shuddered as his breath cast against her ear causing her to get goosebumps up and down her arms. She watched him as he walked back to the party and then returned to the party herself to find Rachel making out with some random, but cute football player.

"Let's go whore," Brooke told her as she grabbed her friend by the arm.

Rachel smiled at the guy and kissed him goodbye and followed Brooke outside to the baby blue Volkswagen Bug.

Brooke put her car into drive and thought about her conversation with Nathan as Rachel chatted about her new boy-toy. Brooke really wasn't paying attention to what Rachel was saying, but she nodded her head occasionally hoping it would seem like she was.

 _'Why did Nathan follow me out to the beach?'_

 _'Why did he say brunettes were his type?'_

 _'He's just a Scott boy. They're all players.'_

* * *

 **So that was the first chapter! Love it? Hate it? Let me know what you think & if I should continue! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! Here we go for another chapter!  
**

 **Guest - Thank you so much for your review! I'm glad you're liking it!**

 **Guest2 - I'm sorry you don't like this story, but I clearly put in the heading that this story will be Brathan. So you were warned. Feel free to skip out on the rest of the story, as it will be nothing but Brathan yumminess ;)**

 **Jdrus989 - I'm glad you enjoyed this chapter! Don't worry, Brooke will fall madly in love with our tall, dark, and handsome basketball hunk! :)**

 **Guest3 - Thank you so much for your support! I'm glad to see there are other Brathan fans! I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

 **CHAPTER 2:**

 _Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!_

Brooke opened one eye to look at the clock and groaned. 7:00am. She hit the snooze button and pulled a pillow over her head to block out the sun that was creeping inside her windows. 9 minutes later and that screeching, annoying sound happened again and she leaned over to turn it off indefinitely. She laid on her back and stared at the ceiling. Two weeks had passed since the party and school was already in full swing. Brooke couldn't believe the homework she had already acquired on top of her other duties. Cheerleading practice was starting this afternoon.

She still hadn't spoken to Lucas, despite his pathetic attempts. Every time she saw him, Peyton wasn't far behind him. She'd forgiven him once before for kissing Peyton, and she didn't think she could do it again. She wished he would just leave her alone. Of course she still loved him, but she couldn't trust him. What kind of relationship would that be?

Brooke slid out of bed and jumped in the shower. Once she stepped out of the shower, she brushed her teeth and began applying her makeup. She never had to put on much, she was blessed with a beautiful complexion. She blow-dried her hair and styled it in natural looking waves. Her hair was down to her middle back now, and she found she loved it even more that way. She decided to throw on a pair of blue jean shorts and an army green off-the-shoulder top. It had black buttons down the front of it and had a ruffled hem on the sleeves leading down to her elbows. Simple, but sexy. She finished the look off with some gold earrings and golden sandals. She looked at her reflection one last time, grabbed her bag, and headed out for school.

* * *

Upon arrival, Brooke smiled at all of her classmates as she walked by heading for her locker. She left her Physics book in there and desperately needed it before class.

"Davis," Nathan called out across the hallway.

Brooke sighed and slammed her locker shut before turning around to face him.

"Aren't you looking lovely, today? You wouldn't happen to be dressing up for me, would you?" He teased her.

"In your dreams, honey," Brooke spat back emphasizing the word 'honey'.

He grabbed at his heart and laughed, "Ouch Davis, that really hurt. But speaking of my dreams..."

Brooke leaned against her locker and raised an eyebrow, "What Scott? Can't forget the only chance you had with me? You were lucky to get that. I'd never have sex with you sober."

"Stick and stones, Davis. I was actually going to say I dreamed of a threesome with the Dunn sisters last night," he answered.

Brooke scoffed and rolled her eyes, "You're such a pig." She adjusted the bag on her shoulder and walked away.

"You know you love me," he called after her and watched her walk away. He wished he could have a deep, meaningful conversation with her again, but he had a reputation to maintain. He couldn't give his feelings away to Brooke either. Completely oblivious while checking out Brooke, Lucas had walked up behind Nathan.

"What's up little brother?" Lucas asked him, watching him suspiciously as he looked down the hall. He had caught Nathan and Brooke talking so he knew he was watching Brooke walk away. What he wanted to know was: _why_?

Nathan snapped out of his daze and faced his brother, leaning on the locker behind him. "Nothing much, man. What's up with you?"

Lucas eyed him. "I saw you talking to Brooke."

Nathan raised an eyebrow, "And?"

"What were you talking about?"

Nathan crossed his arms and glared at his brother, "Why is that any of your business? You cheated on her, remember? Not once, but TWICE."

Lucas eyes softened, "I know man, I keep fucking up. But I do love her. Can you talk to her for me?"

Nathan shook his head, "Nah man, I'm not the right person for that. We hardly have any civil conversations as it is."

"You two looked pretty civil just a second ago, but it's alright little brother. I don't understand why you're so protective of her anyway. You better not be crushing on Brooke. That would be ridiculous." He said as he began walking away.

Nathan glared at his brother's retreating form and walked to class.

* * *

Half the day went by and everyone was relieved for lunch. Brooke sat down with Rachel and the rest of the cheerleaders and Nathan sat down beside Lucas and the basketball team. Nathan kept stealing glances at Brooke's huge smile. He'd always loved her dimples.

"Whatcha keep looking at? You got a thing for one of the cheerleaders?" Tim asked Nathan snapping him out of his daze.

Lucas looked up at Nathan and waited for him to respond, but when he didn't he decided to press the issue.

"Yeah, little brother, which piece of ass are you hoping to score this week?" He asked him with a smirk.

Nathan shook his head, "I'm not trying to hook up with anyone."

Tim scoffed, "Yeah, right! You're Nathan Scott!"

Nathan chuckled and took a drink out of his green Gatorade bottle.

"So guys, I need a plan. I've got to get Brooke back," Lucas said low enough for the sound to not leave the table.

"Man! Why?! When you could get a different piece of ass EVERY night?!" Tim exclaimed and Nathan rolled his eyes.

"Why would you want a different piece of ass every night when you could have Brooke Davis?" Lucas replied.

"Why don't you tell us? This is the second time you've cheated on her," Nathan replied cockily and took another sip of his Gatorade.

"You know little brother, if you want to say something just come out and say it. Don't be a pussy," Lucas replied angrily.

"Just don't think you deserve her, man. That's all." Nathan replied shrugging his shoulders.

"Well luckily that's not your decision. It's hers. I'm going to get her back, Nate. I'm so sorry your dreams of getting into her pants are never going to come true."

Nathan wanted to reply back and throw it right in Lucas' face that he has, in fact, been in Brooke Davis' pants. But he promised her no one would ever find out and that he would destroy the tape. He didn't keep one promise already by keeping the tape, he didn't need to go and spread it around. So in respect for her, he just looked her way and smiled. He then smiled at Lucas.

"You're right brother, what man doesn't want to get with Brooke Davis?" Nathan replied back coolly and the conversation went back to normal.

Basketball and cheerleading practice were happening in the gym right after the last bell rang. Brooke and Rachel walked into the locker room and began changing into their practice uniforms: a white tank top with 'Ravens' written in blue and black short-shorts.

Brooke pulled off her army green top and revealed a navy blue cheetah print bra underneath.

"You skank! That's my bra!" Rachel exclaimed as she threw her shoe at Brooke.

"You left it at my house, you whore. I liked it so I wore it," Brooke said nonchalantly and shrugged.

"So I saw Nathan Scott making eyes at you today," Rachel said as she wiggled her eyebrows.

"Oh shut up, bitch. Nathan was not looking at me. He was probably looking at you! He's probably already heard how easy you are!" Brooke replied jokingly as she threw Rachel's shoe back at her.

Peyton walked in and Rachel and Brooke immediately got quiet and sent glares her way. Peyton sat her bag down on the bench and opened her blue locker. "If you're going to talk about me, you shouldn't be so damn obvious about it."

"You wish you were important enough to even be thought of, bitch," Rachel said with a hand on her hip.

"Well Lucas seems to think of me often. Right, Brooke?" Peyton smirked.

Brooke took a step toward Peyton, but Rachel pulled her back. "Calm down, tiger. Let's go practice."

Brooke and Rachel walked into the gym and gathered the rest of the cheerleaders.

"Come on girls, let's stretch," Brooke called out over everyone and the girls gathered in a circle and began stretching out their muscles.

* * *

"No! No Bevin! It's Low-V, High-V, and then a toe-touch!" Brooke shouted and began to demonstrate.

"Sorry Brooke! I'll get it next time!" Bevin told her.

"It's okay! It's only the first practice," Brooke told her reassuringly.

The girls took a break and watched the boys practice a bit. Nathan dribbled the ball all the way down the court and dunked it, hanging on the rim of the basket. He looked over at Brooke and winked at her, at which she rolled her eyes.

"Come on boys, come get some water before we run laps," Whitey called out.

Nathan and Lucas jogged over to the water cooler and chugged the water they had gotten.

"So check this out, man. I've gotten Jake to help me out with this whole "Operation Get Brooke Back" thing. He came up with the most brilliant plan." Lucas said as he wiped his face off with a towel.

"And what's that exactly?" Nathan asked as he caught his breath in between taking sips.

"You'll just have to see, little brother," Lucas said as he slapped Nathan on the back.

"But Jake came up with it? Don't you think you should win Brooke back with something that was your idea? Something genuine?" Nathan called out to Lucas' back.

Lucas turned around, "And what does it matter to you, Nate? Since when are you the expert on romance? Whatever works, right?"

Nathan sighed and jogged back onto the court. His jackass of a brother most certainly didn't deserve Brooke.

Once practice was over, the guys hit the showers and changed into some fresh clothes. Nathan walked out of the locker room to find Lucas and Mouth over by the sound system. His curiosity was getting the best of him so he walked over.

"What's going on, Mouth?" Nathan asked as they did a bro hug.

"Just helping Luke get back into Miss Davis' good graces," Mouth smiled.

"Yeah. I hope it works out for you." Nathan said as he began walking away. He caught Brooke's eye and he stopped walking. She looked absolutely gorgeous. Nathan was just about to walk over to her when he heard his brother's voice over the speakers in the gym.

"Brooke Davis, there are many things that I am. I'm selfish. I'm an ass. I'm an idiot. But one of the most important things is that I am completely in love with you. I'm hoping you can forgive me." Lucas told her and everyone in the gym said "awwww".

The music to "So Sorry" by Feist came on and he stepped in front of Brooke and began singing.

 _I'm sorry_

 _Two words I always think_

 _After you've gone_

 _When I realize I was acting all wrong_

Brooke had her full attention on Lucas and Nathan began to feel sick to his stomach. She couldn't possibly forgive him, could she?

 _So selfish_

 _Two words that could describe_

 _Oh actions of mine_

 _When patience is in short supply_

Peyton came into view and took in the scene in front of her. She couldn't believe him. Lucas had just told her he loved her the night before.

 _We don't need to say goodbye_

 _We don't need to fight and cry_

 _Oh we, we could hold each other tight tonight_

Lucas walked right in front of Brooke and held out his hand. Nathan held his breath as he watched Brooke's facial expression turn from anger, to sadness, and then confusion. But he felt his heart drop in the bottom of his stomach when Brooke took Lucas' hand.

 _We're so helpless_

 _We're slaves to our impulses_

 _We're afraid of our emotions_

 _And no one knows where the shore is_

 _We're divided by the ocean_

 _And the only thing I know is_

 _That the answer isn't for us_

 _No the answer isn't for us_

Lucas held onto Brooke's hand tightly and kissed the palm of her hand. Brooke smiled at him softly as he finished singing to her.

 _I'm sorry_

 _Two words I always think_

 _Oh after you've gone_

 _When I realize I was acting all wrong_

The music ended and everyone in the gym cheered except for Peyton and Nathan. He was shocked that Brooke had easily forgiven Lucas. It was all wrong. He knew his brother. This idea was all Mouth's.

"Brooke, I'm so sorry for everything I've done to you. If you'll take me back, I promise I'll spend every waking moment trying to make it up to you. I know I've hurt you and I've hurt myself in the process. I promise to never do that again. I love you, Brooke. Will you please take me back?" Lucas asked her and the audience waited quietly for her answer.

Nathan held onto a breath and waited for Brooke's answer as well. His heart fell when he saw tears rolling down her cheeks and a sweet smile spread across her face.

"Yes, Lucas, I forgive you," Brooke whispered and Lucas immediately took her in and kissed her hard. Everyone cheered and Nathan swallowed a lump that was forming in the back of his throat as he exited the gym. He couldn't be around those lies. He needed to get as far away from there as possible.

As he was exiting the gym, he ran into a familiar blonde. Lauren. Lucy. Lacey. What was her name? "Hey Lacey."

She crossed her arms and glared at him, "It's Lucy."

"Right. Want to hang out and get out of here?" Nathan asked her.

She immediately smirked and grabbed his arm, "Lead the way, handsome."

He knew it was wrong to use Lucy, but he needed to feel anything than what he was feeling at that moment.

* * *

 **I know I said Brathan is endgame, but we have to endure a little Brucas before we can get there! It won't be long before the abuse starts and our favorite Scott brother will be there to rescue her. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and let me know what you think! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Here's another chapter! But I feel I need to say this on every single chapter: THIS IS A BRATHAN STORY! Don't like it? Don't read it! But certainly don't be hateful about it! Enjoy! :)**

* * *

 **Guest - I'm so glad you're liking it! I hope you enjoy the future chapters! Thank you for your continued support!**

 **Guest2 - It's okay to not be interested! I hope you find a story that you find interest in!**

 **Ha - Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and I certainly have mine, but I won't be as ugly. Avoid my story, sweetheart. It won't hurt me one bit! :) much love to you!**

 **Callison - Thank you so much for your review! I'm glad you're enjoying the story and I hope I don't disappoint! :)**

 **SophiaDavis - I will be updating every few days or so as I can! Thank you for your support! By the way, I love your username!**

 **OTHRavensBabe23 - Thank you so much for your kind review and support! You're completely right. Brathan is incredibly hot! LOL**

* * *

 **Chapter 3:**

* * *

"Peyton! Open the door!" Lucas banged on Peyton's front door.

Peyton watched him from her bedroom window upstairs. She normally never locked her door, but she couldn't chance Lucas coming back over after what he did. He cheated on Brooke with her. Not only once, but twice. He was a cheater. A liar. Lucas told her he loved her and the very next day, he serenaded Brooke in front of the whole gym. She knew he was coming over to smooth things over, but she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.

"Peyton, open the door please. You know I love you." Lucas pleaded with her.

Peyton finally had enough and opened her window and yelled, "Are you kidding me, Lucas? You love me? You're going to tell me that right after you serenade to Brooke at school? In front of everyone? In front of _me_? Go to hell!"

"Peyton, please just hear me out-" Lucas tried pleading with her, but she slammed the window shut and put some headphones in drowning out the noise. He even tried calling her a few times, so she eventually turned her phone off. She felt tears pricking at the corner of her eyes, and she didn't even attempt to wipe them away. She felt so stupid. Brooke was her best friend in the entire world and she betrayed her over and over again. And for what? A guy who cheated and lied to her as well? She felt incredibly dirty. She couldn't even recognize the person she was turning into. Brooke was there for her when her mother died and has been there for her in every hardship she's faced. The fact of the matter was that Lucas was a charmer. He knew exactly what to say and when to say it. Peyton couldn't say no to him. Lucas was like a drug to her and there was no way out of it. Hiding in her bedroom seemed like the only solution she had at that moment.

* * *

Brooke walked in her room with a huge smile plastered on her face and threw herself on her bed. She felt incredibly giddy and excited that she squealed and began kicking her legs. She had always longed for romance, but she never knew that she would be serenaded. She had never felt so special in her entire life. She swore she was never going to give Lucas another chance, but one song and her heart turned into jello for him. She couldn't help it. She couldn't say no to him for long.

Though she was excited that they were back together, she felt like she needed to see him and lay down some ground rules. If he wanted to be with her, he was going to have to stay away from Peyton. Brooke couldn't be with him always wondering if something was going on between him and Peyton. Hopefully he would understand. She grabbed her keys, checked her reflection in the mirror, and headed out to her car.

The Scott house was only 10 blocks away from the Davis' and Brooke got there in no time. She walked up to the huge brick house and rang the door-bell.

"Well, well, well. Brooke Davis!" Dan Scott greeted her with a smile as he opened the door.

"Hey, Mr. Scott, is Lucas here?" Brooke asked returning his smile.

"No, I'm afraid he hasn't made it home yet. Why don't you come in?" He asked her as he made room for her to step inside the beautiful home.

"No matter how many times I come over, your house is still breathtaking," Brooke gushed as she looked around.

"Dan? Who was at the door?" Karen yelled walking from the kitchen to the living room.

"Oh Brooke, honey! Hi!" Karen exclaimed as walked across the room to hug her tightly.

"Hey Karen!"

"Are you here for Lucas? He isn't here yet, but you're more than welcome to come and sit with me in the kitchen!" Karen told her as she ushered her to sit at the bar in the kitchen.

"Whatever you're making smells absolutely delicious!" Brooke told her. The aroma was making her stomach growl in hunger.

"You must stay for dinner," Karen told her as she added seasoning to the pot.

"Oh, no, I couldn't intrude like that," Brooke protested.

"Nonsense! We have more than enough! You must stay." Dan said as he entered the room behind her, setting the newspaper he was holding down on the dining table.

"Well if you insist! What kind of girl would reject a delicious homemade meal?" Brooke laughed.

Karen returned her laugh when they heard someone come through the door and slam it behind them. Brooke turned her bar stool to see Lucas stomping through the living room, throwing his keys on the end table.

"Honey? Are you alright?" Karen asked him concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Brooke. What are you doing here?" Lucas asked.

Brooke immediately felt hurt and like she was intruding. She was absolutely confused. He just professed his love to her in front of everyone at practice. What could have possibly made him so upset in that short amount of time?

"Lucas Eugene, that is not the way I raised you! I invited her to stay for dinner," Karen replied for Brooke.

Brooke smiled at Karen and twisted her hands in her lap. "I came over to talk to you, and your mom asked me to stay for dinner."

"Let's go outside. We can talk there," Lucas said roughly before jerking the door back open. Brooke stood up and reluctantly followed him outside.

"So what's up?" Lucas asked as he walked down the steps, Brooke keeping up with him with every step he took.

"That can wait. What's the matter? I know something is wrong." Brooke asked Lucas, looking up at him with concerned eyes.

"Nothing, Brooke. Just been a long day." Lucas replied as he grabbed a basketball from the garage and began dribbling it on the pavement of the driveway.

"What happened since practice?" Brooke asked pressing further. She wanted to know what happened to change his mood. She had just gotten him back and now she felt as if he was already pulling away.

"God, Brooke. I just said it's been a long day. Can't you ever just stop? No, you have to come over uninvited and practically force my parents to invite you to dinner." Lucas yelled at her.

Brooke felt tears fill her eyes, but she blinked them away. "Why are you acting like this?"

"Acting like what?" He snapped.

"Like this... a little over an hour ago you sang to me in front of everyone and begged to be with me again. I'm here, Lucas. And now you're treating me like trash." Brooke said softly.

"I'm not treating you badly, Brooke. Don't be such a drama queen. What is it you wanted to talk to me about?" Lucas asked.

"I just wanted to talk to you about our relationship. It's no big deal," Brooke said as she shrugged and looked down.

"No big deal?" Lucas scoffed.

"Alright, fine. I don't want you hanging around Peyton anymore," Brooke told him.

Lucas looked shocked and then annoyed. "What?!"

"If we're going to be together, I don't want you hanging around Peyton. You've cheated on me twice with her. You can understand that, can't you?" Brooke asked folding her arms across her chest.

"No. I can't. Are you really going to be so insecure that you're forbidding me to see her?"

Brooke sighed. "Never mind, I'm just going to go," Brooke said as she began walking away.

Lucas grabbed her by the arm roughly and spun her around, "You're not going anywhere."

Brooke yanked her arm out of his grasp and looked up at him, "Yes I am. Do not touch me like that again."

"Touch you like what? You're being dramatic. I was just trying to tell you not to leave so we can work on us. I won't see Peyton anymore, okay?" Lucas asked trying to play it off innocently.

Brooke looked at him and got lost in his blue eyes. She could see he was truly sorry. This is what she was talking about. How she couldn't ever say no to him.

"It's okay, Lucas. I understand it was a lot of me to ask," Brooke said softly.

Lucas took her hand in his and kissed it. "I'm sorry for acting like an ass. Please stay for dinner."

Brooke nodded and turned her head to the vehicle pulling in the driveway. Nathan pulled up in his black mustang and parked beside Brooke's VW Bug.

"Where've you been, little brother? I didn't see you leave after practice," Lucas asked Nathan.

"Got caught up with Lucy," Nathan replied as he walked by them and headed toward the door.

"Lucy? The blonde from the party?" Brooke asked him out of curiosity.

"That's the one." Nathan responded cockily.

"Good for you, Nate. Did you at least stay to hear my song? Brooke and I are back together," Lucas informed him.

"Congratulations." Nathan said as he walked in the house, slamming the door behind him.

Brooke stared at the door Nathan had just entered and frowned. He seemed truly upset about something.

* * *

"Dinner looks wonderful, Karen. Thank you so much for insisting I stay for dinner!" Brooke exclaimed.

"It's no problem at all, I'm so happy to see you back here," Karen replied.

"Yeah, so am I, Brooke. Son, this is who you need to be with. I gotta tell you, that Peyton Sawyer is just trash," Dan said as he took a bite of his chicken.

Lucas squinted his eyes at his father and Karen felt things get incredibly tense.

"So, Nathan, how was school today?" Karen asked him.

Nathan shrugged, "It was school."

"How was basketball practice?" Dan asked firmly.

"It was fine, Dad" Nathan huffed.

"Well fine isn't going to take you to the NBA, son. You need to be great. Perfect, even," Dan replied sternly, and didn't let up for one second. "You need to step up your game, Nate. No matter how hard you try, you'll never beat my record. But you can at least try and make your old man proud," Dan said with a smirk.

"Dammit, dad! Just leave it alone! I promise I work my ass off every single day to make you proud of me! Just drop it!" Nathan exclaimed dropping his fork onto his plate, causing it to clatter together.

"Nathan Royal! Watch your mouth!" Karen yelled from across the table. Karen's voice got softer as she spoke again, "Dan, please stop pestering our son during dinner. And please not in front of our guest."

"Look, I'm sorry. Can I please be excused?" Nathan asked and Karen nodded silently.

Brooke sat there looking down at her plate feeling extremely uncomfortable at the family outburst. Lucas didn't seem at all bothered by it, he was stuffing his mouth full of food. Brooke scrunched her nose in disgust.

"I'll be right back, I'm going to run to the bathroom really quickly," Brooke announced politely.

"Of course, hon. Go on ahead, you know where it is," Karen said sweetly.

Brooke smiled softly and got up from the table heading for the stairs leading to the second floor of the home. She passed the bathroom and went straight to the familiar bedroom and softly knocked.

"Come in," Nathan groaned.

Brooke walked in and softly closed the door behind her. "Hey."

Nathan was laying on his bed, tossing a basketball up and down in the air. "What do you want?"

"Just came to check on you. You seem upset." She said as she leaned against the door she just closed.

"Wow. Caught that, huh? My question is what are you doing here in my room? Especially now that you're my brother's girlfriend... _again_?" He said 'brother's girlfriend' like it was the most disgusting thing in the world.

Brooke gulped. "Nathan, are you mad at me?"

Nathan scoffed, "No, Davis. Not everything is about you. I'm just stressed out over basketball."

"You're not mad that I'm back with Lucas?" Brooke asked softly.

"Jesus Christ, Brooke. I just said not everything is about you. I don't give a shit if you're with my brother or not. I had you first, remember? That drunken night at my beach house. Wasn't much worth remembering, if I do say so myself. He can gladly have my sloppy seconds even if he doesn't know it yet." Nathan growled out.

Brooke stood there, absolutely shocked, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. She felt like someone had punched her in the chest. "Nathan..."

Nathan's face was cold as stone, "Just get out, Brooke."

Brooke nodded and walked out, shutting the door softly behind her. She dried her tears and walked downstairs to the dinner table.

"I'm so sorry, but I have to go. Something has come up and I'm needed at home." Brooke tried to make it sound believable.

"Oh honey, it's alright! Would you like me to pack you some leftovers?" Karen asked her.

"No thank you, Karen. Thank you so much for dinner. I wish I could stay longer," Brooke smiled.

"I'll walk you to the door," Lucas offered and stood up from the table.

"I'm sorry that I have to go. I'll call you later, okay?" Brooke stepped on the tips of her toes to kiss Lucas on the cheek.

"Sounds good, pretty girl. I love you." Lucas smiled and kissed her chastely on the lips.

"I love you too, handsome." Brooke said as she walked away.

"Oh and Brooke, I really am sorry about grabbing you earlier," Lucas admitted looking down at the ground.

"It's okay, babe. I know you're sorry. I know you won't do it again," Brooke lifted his face so he met her eyes and she smiled at him. She really believed he hung the moon and stars and she would do anything in the world for him.

* * *

 **The next day:**

* * *

Brooke skipped happily to her locker and grabbed the books she needed for her next class. She checked her binder to make sure her notes on World War II were still in there before she shut her locker door. She felt arms wrap around her from behind and a huge dimpled grin spread across her face. "Hey boyfriend!"

"Hey pretty girl, how about I walk you to class?" Lucas asked her as he wrapped his arm around her waist.

"I'd love that!" Brooke smiled up at him. "But first: a kiss?"

"How could I resist when my girlfriend is so damn sexy?" Lucas asked flirting with her before he bent down and pressed his lips against hers. It was short, but it made Brooke incredibly happy.

"Get a room you two. No one wants to see that shit," Nathan said gruffly as he passed by the couple heading for his own locker.

"Do you know what's wrong with Nate?" Brooke asked Lucas, concerned for the younger brother. She felt bad for Nathan. She knew he was known around school as the all star athlete who had a different girl every day. She knew about his playboy ways, but she also knew about the pressure he was under from his father. She knew who he was deep down. She knew he had an amazing heart. She knew how Nathan must feel trying to get his father to be proud of him. She felt the same way about her own mother. Nothing was ever good enough for Victoria.

"Don't know. Don't really care," Lucas replied as he looked behind him at Nathan. He had a hunch that Nathan's problem was with him. He strongly suspected that Nathan had a crush on Brooke and that didn't set well with him. Nathan would never have Brooke. No one would.

* * *

Peyton was walking down the hall, trying to get to her next class before the tardy bell rang. She couldn't get another tardy or that would land her in detention. She hadn't seen Lucas so far and that was a relief. She was still incredibly heartbroken over what he'd done to her and seeing him would only make it worse.

She rounded the corner, looking down at her black converses, not watching in front of her. She walked passed the janitor's closet when she was immediately pulled in and the door shut behind her quickly.

"What the hell?!" Peyton exclaimed and saw it was Lucas that pulled her into the closet. She immediately went for the door knob to open the door.

"Peyton, just listen to me. Please?" Lucas asked her, his blue eyes pleading.

"You have 10 seconds," Peyton replied unimpressed.

"I love you, Peyton. I'm so sorry I've been a jackass. I love you. Not Brooke." Lucas whispered as he tucked a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear.

"If you didn't love Brooke, you wouldn't have begged her for another chance," Peyton replied simply.

"But I did that for my father. You know how he's been riding my ass here lately. I'm hoping it will all change soon, but he doesn't approve of you. Brooke is just a decoy until I can get him to approve of you. Brooke is going to help him get off my back," Lucas said softly, his eyes still pleading with hers.

"You don't love Brooke?" Peyton asked him.

"No, Peyton. I love you. And only you." Lucas repeated.

Peyton immediately kissed Lucas with everything she had. Lucas greedily kissed her back as his hands slipped into her shirt and caressed the revealing skin. She moaned and pulled away from him.

"We gotta get to class," Peyton breathed out against his lips.

"I know. I'll see you later though, right?" Lucas asked her cupping her cheeks.

Peyton nodded. "Come by my house tonight."

Lucas kissed her once more, "I'll be there."

Lucas walked out of the closet and Peyton waited to walk out a minute after him so it didn't seem suspicious. What they didn't know was that someone had been watching them the whole time.

* * *

 **Reviews make me happy! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Here we go with another one guys! I'm hoping you enjoy this one as much as the others! Your reviews make me so happy so please keep them coming!**

* * *

 **Guest - I'm so happy that you're liking my story and that you took your time to write me a review to let me know! Makes me happy :)**

 **OTHRavensBabe23 - Thank you so much for your continued support! I wanted to start off small and then things will get worse as the story progresses, as all do abusive relationships. I hope you stick with me!**

 **SophiaDavis - Nathan is incredibly jealous ;) thank you so much for your review! Honestly, the more reviews I get, the faster it makes me want to update!**

 **One line that Brooke has in this chapter is based off a One Tree Hill episode whenever a guy tries to hit on her at the bar. And of course the episode of the sex tape! Just giving credit where it's due!**

* * *

 **Chapter 4:**

* * *

Mouth dribbled his fingers alongside of his desk as he waited for class to be over. He kept sneaking glances over at Lucas, who was writing down everything that was on the board in front of them into his notebook. Lucas caught Mouth's eyes and gave him a confused look, but then gave him a smile before shifting his focus back on the chalkboard. After what seemed like hours, the bell finally rang relieving them for lunch. Mouth got up from his desk and walked after Lucas.

"Lucas!" Mouth yelled after him.

Lucas turned around and smiled. "Hey Mouth, what's up?"

"Do you wanna meet up at the River Court later?"

"Uhhh," Lucas began as he scratched behind his ear.

"I was just wanting to practice my commentary and I thought it would be awesome to hang out," he told Lucas.

"Honestly, tonight's no good for me man. But sometime soon for sure!" Lucas said as he patted Mouth on the back and started to walk away.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with Peyton, would it?" Mouth called after him.

Lucas turned around to face Mouth, but didn't say anything. His face was a hard as stone and unreadable.

"What did you just say?" Lucas asked as he began walking toward Mouth again.

"I saw you, Lucas. In the janitor's closet." Mouth explained.

"You didn't see anything," Lucas said with a shrug.

"I saw you, Lucas! How could you do this to Brooke? Again?! After I helped you win her back?" Mouth asked angrily.

Lucas guided Mouth into an empty classroom and shut the door behind them. He immediately grabbed Mouth by the shirt and slammed him into the wall of the classroom.

"You didn't see a damn thing, Mouth" Lucas growled out, Mouth's shirt were in still in Lucas' fists.

Mouth was too shocked to say anything at all. He was surprised by Lucas' outburst, he had never seen Lucas act this way before. Lucas eyes were usually a light blue, but his eyes now... his eyes were dark. He didn't recognize this person.

"Alright, Luke" Mouth said with his hands up in surrender, but Lucas still held him tight against the wall.

"I'm serious, Mouth. You better not say anything to anyone or it will get bad for you. Do you understand?" Lucas said threatening Mouth.

Mouth hesitated, but nodded and Lucas released him and pushed away from the wall. "I'm glad we could straighten this out. You didn't see anything. Got it?"

"Got it, man. Sorry." Mouth apologized and Lucas walked out of the classroom, jerking the door so hard that it banged against the wall when he stepped out. He hated what Lucas was doing to Brooke, but he also didn't want to fight Lucas. He would get his ass handed to him and he knew that. Lucas was 6 feet tall and towered over him.

* * *

Nathan sat down in Biology in his usual seat behind Brooke and opened his book to page 45. The lesson was going to be on Human Reproduction. Greeeeeat. Something he was an expert on. He smirked when Tim came and sat in the desk beside him.

"Check it out, man. The lesson is on Human Reproduction, today" Nathan said as he laughed showing Tim the pictures in the textbook.

"Dude! Who knew vaginas could be so ugly?!" Tim exclaimed.

"Tim, stop. You're being weird." Nathan said with a laugh.

Nathan's voice ceased when Brooke entered the class and took her seat in front of him. She offered him a small smile, but he quickly looked away. He couldn't be friends with her. Not anymore.

"Alright, class, settle down. Today we'll be discussing Human Reproduction and the anatomy of the female," Mrs. Roberts addressed the class.

"She doesn't have to explain much to you, my man" Tim whispered to Nathan.

Nathan laughed and it caught the attention of Mrs. Roberts.

"Nathan, Tim? Is there something you'd like to share with the class since it's obviously so important that you have to interrupt my class?"

"I was just telling my boy, Nathan, here that he didn't need to sit in for this lesson since he knows all about the female anatomy," Tim responded and the entire class howled with laughter. All except Brooke. Brooke scowled and rolled her eyes.

"Brooke, what's gotten your panties in a wad?" Tim asked her.

"Everyone knows Nathan has been around. There's no need to announce it to everyone. Some of us actually want to learn today," Brooke snapped back.

"I've been around, huh? Is that jealousy I hear? Upset that I never slept with you, Davis?" Nathan asked her and the whole class said "oooooo".

Brooke scoffed, "In your dreams, Scott. Which still wouldn't happen there because even your fantasy version of me isn't interested in your small package."

The class howled with laughter again and Nathan left it alone. Her comment actually took a blow to his ego. She thought he was small?!

Truth was, Nathan was absolutely amazing in bed. Brooke was just jealous to hear about him with other girls for some odd reason. But she squashed the feeling and forced it down.

"Nathan, Tim, and Brooke, that's enough! Do not interrupt my class again or you'll be given a detention," Mrs. Roberts yelled.

* * *

"Davis!" Nathan called after Brooke when the bell rang dismissing the class.

Brooke turned around and rolled her eyes, "Anything I can help you with, Scott?"

"Yeah. Why did you embarrass me like that in class?"

Brooke laughed as she made her way to her locker, "You're joking, right? Mr. 'Brooke Davis is sad because I'd never sleep with her'?"

Nathan looked down. "I'm sorry for that comment. I was out of line."

Brooke put her books into her locker and Nathan noticed a bruise on Brooke's arm. "Don't worry about it, Nathan. We're not friends."

"What happened to you?" Nathan asked her pointing to the bruise on her arm.

Brooke looked down at the bruise on her arm from where Lucas grabbed her, "Oh nothing major. Silly me. I ran into a doorway with my arm."

Nathan raised an eyebrow. "A doorway shaped like fingers?"

Brooke slammed her locker shut and huffed. "Yes, I ran into a doorway. It's none of your damn business anyway. I was nothing but a pathetic sexual encounter, remember? Oh wait, you said it wasn't worth remembering."

Nathan watched her walk off. If she said the bruise was nothing, then it was nothing. He hurried off to his next class before the tardy bell could ring.

* * *

Brooke went home and took a long, relaxing bubble bath. She had tried calling Lucas several times, but there was no answer. She sighed and closed her eyes, relishing the feeling of the hot water relaxing her muscles. Her thoughts drifted to Nathan.

 _Brooke was sitting on the couch at Nathan's beach house when he came to sit beside her._

 _"I'm drunk," she said._

 _"Peyton just dumped me." Was his reply._

 _They both looked at each other and that was it. Their lips were molded together and they were stumbling to find their way to the bedroom. Brooke's heart was hammering in her chest as he led her inside the bedroom and shut the door behind him, locking it._

 _"You can back out if you want, Davis." He told her._

 _"Are you and Peyton really broken up?" She asked him._

 _He nodded. "Yeah we really are." That was all Brooke needed to hear. She immediately took her shirt off, revealing her red bra as she went over to kiss him again. He broke their kiss to take off his shirt as well, but then met her lips once again as he set her down on the bed before laying on top of her. He kissed her hungrily before pulling back and looking behind him at the video camera._

 _"Hold on a second," Nathan said as he sat up on the bed to turn on the video camera._

 _Brooke laid there on the bed, propped up on her elbows. "What are you doing?"_

 _Nathan pressed some buttons on the video camera, "Oh, just having a little fun."_

 _Brooke smiled, "Promise you'll erase it?"_

 _He smiled back, "You got it." He climbed back on top of her and captured her lips in another kiss._

Brooke snapped from her thoughts and sighed. She shouldn't be thinking about Nathan Scott. He clearly didn't enjoy their encounter so why was she thinking about it? Yes, she claimed she was drunk. But she remembered everything. She remembered every kiss, every caress, every whisper. He made her feel incredibly loved that night. She had never felt that way sleeping with anyone else. He had been absolutely amazing to her that following morning as well. Fixed her breakfast, gave her some aspirin for her headache. Even gave her some clothes of his to wear home instead of wearing her own. So yes, she knew the real Nathan Scott.

She jumped when her phone rang, and she dried her hands before picking it up. Lucas. She answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hey baby. You tried to call?"

"Yeah, I was just wondering where you were."

"Oh I'm sorry pretty girl, I've been with Mouth." He answered.

"It's okay. What are you doing now?"

"I'm about to pull into your place if that's alright?"

"Yeah! Give me five minutes!"

Brooke pulled the plug in her tub and got out and dried her body off before slipping into a tank top and shorts. She ran downstairs to unlock the door and Lucas walked right in giving her a kiss.

"Hey pretty girl," he said as he kissed her again.

"Hey handsome," she smiled after she kissed him back.

"I gotta talk to you about something," Lucas told her.

"What is it?" Brooke asked him concerned.

"Why are you talking to Nathan?" He asked her. It was like he immediately flipped a switch and he wasn't the normal Lucas anymore.

Brooke looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Someone told me they saw you two talking in the hall and I saw him staring at you during basketball practice." Lucas growled out.

"Lucas, there's nothing going on between Nathan and me." Brooke protested, but Lucas didn't care. He grabbed her by the shoulders and slammed her against the nearest wall, knocking the breath out of Brooke.

"I don't like Nathan looking at you. You tell him to stop talking to you." Lucas told her as he placed his hand around her throat.

Brooke was terrified, tears filling her eyes. She nodded. "Okay, Lucas. Just please let me go."

Lucas let her go and she slid down to the floor and wrapped her arms around her knees as she cried silently.

And like Lucas flipped the switch back, he was down on the floor scooping Brooke up in his arms apologizing profusely. Brooke was confused. She was hurt. She felt numb.

* * *

The next day at school, Brooke purposely avoided Nathan. She didn't want to make Lucas mad again. Nathan kept looking at her like he was concerned, but she looked away every time. Why did he care? He really needed to mind his own damn business. Lunch came around and I decided to sit on the bench alone outside.

"Hey Brooke," Mouth greeted as he sat beside her.

"What's up, most special guy in my life?" She teased him.

"Nothing much. How are you doing?" He asked her, hoping that Brooke had a hint of something going on between Lucas and Peyton.

"I'm great!" Brooke said cheerfully.

Mouth was about to respond until he saw Lucas heading their way. And he didn't look happy.

"See ya Brooke!" Mouth said as he walked off towards the school.

"What did he want?" Lucas asked her, watching Mouth walk away.

"Just chatting. You know how Mouth and I are friends." Brooke told him with a smile on her face.

"Yeah. He didn't say anything else?" He asked her, pressing for more information.

"No, silly. Is he supposed to say something?" She asked him.

"No. Just curious." Lucas replied. "Well I have to get off to my next class. I'll catch up with you later, pretty girl." He kissed her on the head and walked away.

* * *

"Mouth!" Lucas yelled down the hall trying to catch up with him.

Mouth closed his eyes and sighed. He turned around and put on a straight face, "What's up?"

"Why were you talking to Brooke?" He asked.

"I was just seeing how she was. I didn't say anything to her, I swear." Mouth replied.

"Good. And you better not ever," Lucas threatened him. "Better yet, just stay away from Brooke all-together. Got it?!"

Mouth nodded and walked away. He needed to tell someone about the way Lucas was behaving.

* * *

It was fifth period and Nathan sat down in his seat in Biology. He was hoping he could get Brooke to talk to him. She walked in, dressed in a purple dress, breathtakingly beautiful as usual and sat down in front of him.

"Looking good, Davis" Nathan said lowly.

Brooke ignored him and opened her book to the assigned chapter.

"Brooke." Nathan called out to her, but she still ignored him again.

"Brooke Penelope." Nathan said louder.

Brooke turned around and snapped, "Will you please leave me alone?!"

"What's crawled up your ass?" Nathan asked her.

Brooke sighed and teared up. "Please, Nathan. Just stop. Please stop trying to talk to me. It's causing problems between Lucas and I. He doesn't want me talking to you, okay? And I figured it was a small request considering you and I aren't friends."

Nathan was baffled. "My brother doesn't want you talking to me?" Brooke shook her head sadly and shifted her focus back onto her book.

* * *

Basketball practice was rough. It was rough because Nathan was pissed. Every time he had to throw the ball to Lucas, he threw it way harder than need be and sometimes Lucas missed the pass. It was pissing both Lucas and Whitey off. They ended up having to run extra laps for the mistakes.

After they hit the showers, Nathan didn't speak to anyone. He grabbed his bag and immediately got into his car and sped off. Lucas followed him home.

"Nate!" Lucas called out when he entered the house. Nathan was sitting at the bar, eating a bowl of cereal. Nathan ignored him.

"Nathan? What the hell is wrong with you?" Lucas asked him angrily.

"You don't want Brooke talking to me?!" Nathan replied.

Lucas' eyes turned angry. "So she spoke to you, huh?"

"Only because I forced her to and she explained why she's been ignoring me. Why can't she talk to me, man? What's your problem?" Nathan asked as he stood up from the bar stool and stood toe to toe with his older, but smaller, brother.

"My problem is the pathetic little crush you have on her, man." Lucas replied.

Nathan felt like he had been punched in the gut. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb, Nate. I can see the way you look at her. But guess what? She belongs to me. You'll never have her," Lucas said cockily.

Nathan stayed silent.

"Just stay away from her. Okay? I'm glad we could have this talk. Now I'm headed over to Brooke's." Lucas smiled evilly.

* * *

Brooke had ordered Chinese takeout for dinner, since it was always Lucas' and her favorite. She lit some candles. She wanted tonight to go perfectly so she didn't set him off. She dressed in his favorite black dress and wore the pearl necklace he had bought her for her birthday. The birthday before she found out he cheated with Peyton the first time...

Lucas didn't even knock and he entered Brooke's house. "Brooke?"

Brooke came around the corner and flashed him a famous dimpled, Brooke Davis smile. "Hey handsome."

"Are you really going to stand there and think I don't know?" He asked her.

Oh no. Brooke's stomach dropped and she felt weak. He was going to snap again.

"What are you talking about?" She asked him.

"You spoke to Nathan again today. I thought we had an understanding?" Lucas growled out as he came near her.

"I tried ignoring him, Lucas. And when I did finally speak to him, I explained I couldn't talk to him. That's all." Brooke touched his arm to assure him.

He pulled his arm away from her and began to walk away. Brooke walked after him. "Lucas, please.." she grabbed his arm, but he yanked out of her grasp and backhanded her hard across her face. Brooke stood there, holding her face, eyes widened in horror. He had just hit her across the face. As soon as he realized what he had done, he immediately rushed over and picked her up in his arms and hugged her tightly.

"I am so sorry, Brooke. Please forgive me! I didn't mean to. And I'll never do it again." Lucas kept chanting to Brooke over and over as he held her.

Brooke stood there with Lucas' arms around her, but her arms remained by her side. She felt nothing. She felt empty. She felt worthless. Her eye had already began to swell up and Lucas tried kissing the pain away, but it was too late. The damage was already done. To Brooke's face. To Brooke's soul. And to Brooke's heart.

* * *

I hate to make Lucas the bad guy, as much as I really don't like him. But as someone who was in an abusive relationship, I felt the need to write about it.

Reviews make me happy! :)


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Thank you so much to everyone that is reading the story and, of course, reviewing! Your reviews make me update faster so I appreciate them! :)**

 **In this chapter, there will be a lot of interaction with Dan. In this story, Dan is a good guy. Yes, I know. I cried when he killed Keith and hated him for it. But as the seasons went on, I saw he truly was changing. He truly regretted all the things he had done and was wanting to be a part of his family again. And then he saved Nathan, which I will forever be grateful to him for bringing him home! I cried my eyes out when Dan Scott died. His character was the best character in the show, aside from Brooke and Nathan. His character development was amazing and I LOVED it!**

 **I had thought about using Dan as a villain, covering up Lucas' acts... but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I love Dan Scott too much! LOL**

* * *

 **Chapter 5:**

* * *

When Brooke's alarm went off at 7am the next morning, she woke up with a severe headache. She had to admit it was one of the worst headaches she's ever had in her life. She groaned and stood up, walking to her bathroom to relieve herself and brush her teeth. But what she saw in the mirror made her freeze in her tracks. A huge, black and purple bruise covered her left eye. It was almost swollen shut, but not quite because she could still see out of it. She tried touching the wound and winced from the pain. She stood there and stared at herself in the mirror, unsure of how she got there.

Sure, Lucas had always had a bit of a temper, but he never took it this far. She wasn't the kind of girl who lets herself get beat up by her boyfriend so why was she sticking around now? Belief he could change? She had heard horror stories of domestic violence and how it never gets better, it only gets worse. She sighed and tears started to flow freely against her cheeks as she finally broke down, collapsing on her bathroom floor as she drew her knees to her chest. She knew she had to end things with him. But right now, she couldn't face him or anyone else for that matter. So she decided to skip school. She knew she had class, cheerleading practice, and her student council president duties to attend to, but for once she didn't care. It scared her how much she actually didn't care about anything. She was numb.

* * *

Nathan entered school and immediately sought out Brooke. He wanted to make sure she was alright. But when he didn't see her, it began to worry him.

"Hey Mouth!" Nathan yelled as he jogged up to his friend.

"Hey Nate!"

"Have you seen Brooke today?" Nathan asked him.

Mouth's face flashed an emotion that Nathan couldn't quite read and Mouth gave a small smile, "No man, I haven't seen her. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I'm sure everything is fine. Maybe she's just sick." Nathan replied.

Mouth nodded. "Alright, well, I gotta get to class. Let me know if you hear from Brooke."

"I won't be hearing from her." Nathan replied lowly more to himself than anyone, but it caught Mouth's attention.

"Why man? Did you have a falling out?" Mouth asked.

Nathan shook his head. "Luke is wanting Brooke to stay away from me. So far she's done a pretty great job of it."

Mouth sighed and shook his head. "Luke's been acting strange ever since he got back together with Brooke."

Nathan arched an eyebrow, "You think so? He's always been an ass."

"Yeah, but I don't know. I feel something is off." Mouth replied, not wanting to give too much away. He was afraid Lucas would walk up at any second.

"Thanks, man. I'll run by her house and check on her." Nathan said as he slapped Mouth on the back and headed out of the school. He had two more classes, but he didn't care. He would be back in time for basketball practice.

He walked over to his black mustang and jumped in, speeding out of the school parking lot to the Davis' house. He parked out front and got out of the car, walking up the sidewalk to the beautiful white house. And the signature red door. He knew how much she loved being the girl behind the red door.

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_

Nathan steadily knocked at the front door, but his attempts went unanswered. He looked through the windows that were on both sides of the door, but he didn't see any movement. He saw her VW Bug in the driveway, so he knew that she was home.

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_

"Brooke!" Nathan yelled, but there was no answer. "I know you're home! Your car is in the driveway. Please just open up!"

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_

But all of Nathan's attempts went unanswered. She wasn't coming to the door. He sighed and sat down on her front steps, hoping that maybe she would change her mind. He finally had a realization that the back door leading to the pool might be unlocked. It was worth a shot anyway. So he ran to the backyard and hopped the fence, hoping she wouldn't be too angry with him for basically breaking into her house. He was just concerned.

To his luck, the back door was unlocked and he let himself in quietly. He walked through the kitchen, but nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard a voice come from the kitchen table. She was sitting in the dark so he wasn't able to see her clearly yet.

"Jesus Christ! You scared the hell out of me!" Nathan exclaimed.

"Nathan Scott. Breaking and entering, are we?" Brooke asked sarcastically.

He cleared his throat and shifted his feet, "Um, I didn't see you at school."

"And that made you want to break into my house? I didn't answer the door for a reason, dumbass."

"Do you really hate me that badly, Brooke? I know I've said some pretty harsh things, and I'm sorry. I was just concerned about you."

Brooke sighed. "No, I don't hate you, Nate. But you shouldn't be here either."

"Why? Because of Lucas?" He asked her.

"Yes." Her response was simple.

"Well he'll just have to kiss my ass. Why are you sitting in the dark like a crazy person?" Nathan asked, and Brooke jumped up to stop him when he reached for the light switch, but it was too late. The lights came on. He saw. Brooke saw Nathan's eyes get as wide as saucers and he immediately reached out to her.

"Brooke? What happened to you?" He whispered as he lightly touched her cheek, concern filling his eyes.

"I fell down the stairs. I'm clumsy," She laughed trying to play it off.

"You.. fell down the stairs?" Nathan asked confused, slowly repeating her every word.

"Yup. You got it." Brooke said with another laugh as she avoided his eyes.

"You're lying." Nathan whispered and Brooke immediately looked up to meet his eyes. How dare he?!

"What?" Brooke asked him, clearly offended.

"I said.. you're lying." Nathan repeated in a whisper.

"You don't know anything!" Brooke yelled at him, but Nathan remained calm.

"Someone did this to you.. who was it? Was it Lucas?" Nathan asked her.

"No. It was no one! I already told you that I fell down the stairs!" Brooke yelled at him pushing him away from her. "Just get out!"

Nathan pulled her in and held her tightly against him, despite her attempts to get free. "Brooke, please. I just want to help you. The bruise on your arm.. your black eye... it's not just a coincidence, is it?" Nathan asked softly. "Just please, Brooke. Let me in. Tell me the truth."

Brooke couldn't stay strong anymore and surrendered into Nathan's hug. She wrapped her arms tightly around him and sobbed. He held her tightly and caressed her hair as she sobbed into his chest. "Shh.." he whispered in attempts to calm her down.

"Just tell me one thing, Brooke. Please." Nathan whispered as he leaned back to look into her hazel eyes, cupping her cheeks with both hands.

Brooke stared at him silently, tears streaming down her face.

"Did Lucas do this?" Nathan asked her softly.

Brooke didn't move. She stayed incredibly still, her hazel eyes fixed on Nathan's royal blue ones. She didn't want to tell him it was his brother. What would he think? What would happen to Lucas? She still loved him, despite everything he's done to her. She didn't want him to get into any serious trouble. So she did the one thing her body ached for her to do in that moment. She had been feeling so numb and Nathan's touch was igniting a fire within her that she couldn't understand. He was making her feel again. So she stood on the tips of her toes and kissed him.

Nathan was taken by surprise as Brooke's lips were suddenly on his. Once he got over the surprise, he immediately started kissing her back, his hands still cupping her cheeks. His hands soon moved into her hair as he kissed her lips as hungrily as he did that night at the beach house. But, reality came crashing down on him and he realized that she was trying to distract him from what was really going on. He pulled away from her.

"Brooke.." He started as he took a step back.

Brooke didn't say a word. Her lust filled eyes were still locked on Nathan's. She tried to make a step toward him, but that made Nathan take another step backwards. Hurt spread across her face and Nathan's stomach dropped.

"Why did I think it was going to be any different this time? You said I wasn't worth remembering, of course you wouldn't want me again." Brooke's voice had gone raspy.

"Brooke, that's not it at all. I didn't mean what I said about that night, trust me. That night was amazing. I just want to know who's been hurting you."

Nathan tried reaching out for her, but she flinched from his touch. "Just go, Nathan. I think it's time you left."

* * *

"Can you tell me why in the hell Whitey called to let me know you weren't there for practice today?!" Dan Scott's voice roared through the home.

"I'm sorry, dad. I had to take care of something important." Nathan replied, looking down at the table.

"Important?! What's more important than basketball?! You're pissing away your chances for a scholarship, son! Don't you see that?!" Dan yelled.

"I was helping a friend. She got hurt. I'll go outside and make as many baskets as you want me to make. I'm sorry, dad." Nathan replied.

Dan's shoulders slumped and he sighed as he sat down across from Nathan. "Who was it, son?"

"She probably wouldn't want me to tell you, but it was Brooke. I saw a bruise on her arm at school. And then she skipped school today so I went over to check on her. She had a black eye." Nathan said sadly.

"Brooke has a black eye? Does Lucas know about this? Did Brooke say how it happened?!" Dan asked, clearly worried about Brooke.

"I have no idea if Lucas knows about it. She told me she just fell down the stairs."

"But obviously you don't believe her," Dan said in understanding.

"No. I don't. But when I questioned her again, she kicked me out." Nathan replied.

Dan sighed. "Just give her a few days and see if she will talk to you. But for now, go outside and shoot some baskets. You have to keep your game up."

Nathan nodded. "Thanks dad."

Dan smiled softly, "I'm sorry for being so hard on you all of the time, son. I just don't want you making the same mistakes I did. You have so much potential and so much promise riding on you. I want to help you live up to that potential."

"I understand. Your dream is still safe," Nathan replied.

* * *

Dan walked up the stairs of his home and knocked on Lucas' bedroom door. He heard soft rock music coming from the other side of the door and Lucas yell "Come in!"

Dan opened the door to see Lucas sitting on his bed, his laptop in his lap. "Hey son."

"Hey dad. What's up?" Lucas asked him, setting his laptop to the side.

"I've heard Brooke has a black eye. Did you know anything about that?" Dan asked him, getting straight to the point.

Lucas' eyes widened. "No sir, I haven't heard or seen from Brooke. She wasn't at school today. Who told you she had a black eye?"

"Nathan, son. He went by her house to check on her. That's why he wasn't at practice." Dan explained.

Lucas' eyes filled with anger, but he squashed it down. He couldn't lose it in front of his father. "I didn't know he went to see her."

"Yeah. Do you know how she would have gotten the black eye?" Dan asked him.

"No sir. Maybe her and Peyton are still fighting." Lucas answered, not meeting Dan's eyes.

"Peyton, huh? Why are Brooke and Peyton fighting?" Dan asked.

"Because I cheated on Brooke with Peyton, dad. I'm not proud of it, but it happened." Lucas explained.

"I'd hope you wouldn't be proud of that, son. Why would you do that? That's like trading in a Porsche for a Ford Pinto." Dan scoffed.

Lucas shrugged.

"Why would they still be fighting? Do you still have something going on with Peyton?" Dan asked him, pressing for more information.

Lucas sighed. "No, dad. I don't."

But Dan didn't buy that story. Not at all.

Dan began walking around the room, randomly touching Lucas' picture frames and endless trophies he had placed on the shelves. "You know when I was about your age, there was a guy in my senior class who would slap around his girlfriend when no one was looking. Cody Martin. He thought it made him tough, but really he was just a coward. He got off on the power he had over her. Then one day, he beat her until she was unconscious and left her for dead on the side of the road in a deserted area. No one knew about the abuse until she was found. But by then it was too late. She was dead. Her name was Sadie. Sadie Simpson. You can imagine what happened to him next. The basketball team, of course, found out about it and we had our fun with him. We made him pay. Because no woman should have to endure abuse from anyone, let alone a man. A man doesn't abuse women, Lucas. That's not a real man. That's a coward."

Lucas gulped and continued to listen to his father.

"I will tell you this son and I'm only going to tell you this once. I don't know if you're responsible for Brooke's bruises and I sure as hell hope not. I'm not accusing. I just want you to know the consequences for laying your hands on a woman. This goes for Nathan too. If I ever hear of one of you laying your hand upon a woman, you will have to answer to me and THEN the cops. If you think you're man enough to hurt a woman, you better be man enough to fight me. You will no longer be my son and you will be left to fend for yourself. Scott men do not engage in that type of behavior." Dan said sternly.

"Whatever, dad. I just said I didn't give her the black eye. What more do you want?" Lucas asked, throwing his hands up.

"For you to be a man, Lucas." Dan said as left Lucas' room, shutting the door behind him.

* * *

Brooke missed another day of school and rejected every single one of Lucas' calls. She didn't want to look at him, let alone talk to him. She spread herself across her bed and sighed. Her black eye was healing, it wasn't quite as monstrous, but there was still some swelling. Where was Nathan? She wanted Nathan to call.. She would answer her phone then.. But wait. Why was she wanting to hear from Nathan? Especially when he rejected her when she went to kiss him? Brooke groaned at herself. She really needed to quit this whole crush. She heard the front door slam and footsteps coming up the stairs. She had left the door locked so she knew whoever it was had a key.

"Hey bitch!" Rachel yelled from the staircase before she reached Brooke's room. But as she saw Brooke, she immediately ran over to hug her friend.

"Oh my God, Brooke! What happened to you?!" Rachel asked her, still hugging her tightly.

"Fell down the stairs," Brooke replied shrugging her shoulders. "I think it makes me look tough."

Rachel smiled softly, "You're always a tough bitch. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Just stay the night, please. Let's make a girl's night out of it." Brooke told her.

"You've got it, sister. And I know of a remedy that will reduce the swelling in that shiner you have! You'll look good as new!" Rachel smiled at her and Brooke forced herself to smile back.

During the second movie, Brooke's phone rang for the tenth time that night and Rachel smiled sadly at her friend. She paused the movie. "Is there a special reason why you're dodging his phone calls?"

Brooke shrugged, "Don't feel like talking."

"But he's your boyfriend."

"Yeah.. I don't know for how much longer." Brooke answered as she got up to grab some fingernail polish. She decided to keep busy. It was easier that way.

"What?! Come on. Don't lie to me. Just a few days ago he sang to you and professed his love. What could have possibly gone wrong? Are you fighting?"

Brooke shook her head. "No, we're not fighting."

"Then...?" Rachel's voice trailed off.

"It's nothing, Rach. I just don't want to talk to him right now. I don't know what I want anymore." Brooke told her.

"Okay Brookie. You don't have to talk to him." Rachel replied as she unpaused the movie, 'Clueless' that had been interrupted.

* * *

Brooke woke up the next morning to see Rachel standing over her smiling. "What are you smiling about, you whore?"

"Get up! It's Friday! Time for school! Then basketball and then a PARTY!" Rachel exclaimed.

"Oh yeah, school. I'm not going to that." Brooke replied as she pulled the covers back over her face, but Rachel yanked the comforter completely off her bed.

"Get your big ass up. You have to return to school sometime. You can't miss the game tonight so you have to go to school. I'll do your makeup so you can't even see your black eye, okay?" Rachel told her.

Brooke nodded and let Rachel work her magic. Once Rachel was finished, Brooke examined her reflection in the mirror. Rachel was right: she couldn't tell that there was a black eye hidden beneath there.

Brooke straightened her hair and applied some clear lipgloss since Rachel painted her face for her. She dressed in some black high waisted skinny jeans and a wine colored crop top. You could see just a little bit of her stomach. She topped it off with a green, flowy cardigan and some heeled black boots. She looked alright considering what she was hiding underneath all the makeup.

"Listen, Rach. I wanted to tell you thank you for being here for me." Brooke started.

"Aww, you whore! You're going to make me cry and ruin my makeup!" Rachel joked as she fanned her eyes.

"Funny, I didn't know witches cried." Brooke shrugged and then flashed a smile at Rachel. This was good. She felt like once she rid of Lucas everything would be okay.

* * *

School went by in a blur. Mostly because she had so much work to catch up on, considering she had only been gone for two days. She saw Nathan in Biology, but they didn't speak. He looked at her with the same concerned eyes, but she didn't let her glances linger. She wished he would speak to her, but she was also afraid of what he would say about the kiss.

The final bell rang and the basketball team huddled up in the gym outside of the locker room and the cheerleaders were meeting beside the bleachers. Brooke was on her way to meet the girls when someone pulled her hand and led her into an empty classroom. She quickly realized who it was and she squirmed trying to get out of his grasp.

"Lucas. No. I have to get to the gym," Brooke breathed out as she tried to get away from him.

"Baby, I just wanted to tell you I was sorry for losing my temper. You never deserved that. I hope you know I'm incredibly sorry, from deep within my heart." Lucas said as he grabbed her hand.

Brooke pulled her hand away from Lucas and crossed her arms over her chest. "That's the last apology I will ever get from you, Lucas. Because you and me? We're done."

Lucas eyes widened and he panicked. "No Brooke! Please! You know that I love you! I'm so sorry! So damn sorry!"

Brooke scoffed. "Sorry doesn't take away the emotional and physical scars, Lucas."

She walked out of the classroom leaving Lucas behind.

* * *

 **Review please! Let me know what you think!**

 **And what's up next:**

 **The after-game party...**

 **Nathan and Brooke finally have their post-kiss conversation...**

 **And something else that's going to stir up a whole mess of drama! Can anyone guess what it is? :)**

 **If you wanna read more, click that little lovely review button! The more reviews I get, the faster I write! :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Thank you so much to everyone that has reviewed, favorited, and followed my story! Makes me happy :) I have a new chapter and I hope you like it! Please review and let me know what you think! :) here we go with chapter six!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6:**

* * *

The basketball game was one of the best games they had all season, which Brooke was surprised by considering she had just dumped Lucas. He kept glancing over at the sidelines to get a glimpse of her, but she always looked away. She was sick of his games and she was happy that her hands had been completely washed of him. Nathan and Lucas teamed up and took the Tree Hill Ravens to new heights and everyone in the crowd was going insane. Nathan took the winning shot, the ball meeting the basket as soon as the buzzer went off. They had beat Frankinton 65-42.

After the game, everyone headed over to Nathan and Lucas' beach house for a celebratory party. Brooke knew her chances of running into Lucas were extremely high, but she didn't want that to keep her from the party. She deserved to go out and have fun after the hell he had been putting her through. Brooke decided to heat things up and dress a little more sexier than usual. She was single, why couldn't she show a little skin? She decided to wear a black top, which was a sleeveless, cropped bodice with a high halter neckline and sultry front slit. The open back topped with two panels of sheer lace to create a racerback look over a banded waistline. The black skirt she chose to compliment her top was a stretchy, bodycon type that hugged her curves from a high, fitted waist. It was short and hugged her in all the right places. She complimented the look with some red heels and she styled her hair in loose waves that were cascading down her back. She touched up her makeup, but kept the Ravens' "R" on her left cheek in celebration of the game tonight.

She walked in the door and immediately spotted Nathan. He was over by the keg, refilling his cup. She spotted Lucas over in the corner talking to a girl with familiar blonde curls. Brooke rolled her eyes. She wasn't jealous by any means. But not even 24 hours after she broke up with him, he's back up Peyton's ass. That's what bothered her the most. Brooke smiled at her classmates as she weaved through the crowd.

She spotted Mouth standing over by the TV, that was playing Nathan's old game tapes, and she walked over to talk to him. She hadn't seen him around in a few days.

"Hey Buuuuudddy!" Brooke greeted cheerfully, pulling him in for a hug.

Mouth laughed and immediately responded to the hug. "Hey gorgeous!"

"Where've you been? I've missed you!" Brooke replied.

"I'm sorry, Brooke. I've been busy with school and keeping up with my commentary," Mouth lied. He had been staying away from her because of Lucas.

"It's okay. I just want to hang out more often, ya know?"

Mouth nodded. "What about Lucas?"

"What about him? I dumped him before the game." Brooke shrugged.

Mouth opened his mouth in surprise, "Oh Brooke, I'm so sorry."

"Don't sweat it, dude. But what do you say? You and me are hanging out soon. And not one of those generic "we'll get together soon" plans. I mean SOON," Brooke told him pressing her forehead against his joking around.

"You got it," Mouth smiled at her. He had always had a crush on Brooke. Hell, anyone would. But he knew she would never go for a guy like him so he chose to love her from a distance and be the best friend he could be to her.

"I'm thirsty! I'm going to get a drink," Brooke told him in a cheerful, goofy way and walked into the kitchen.

"Woah, Brooke Davis. You're looking FINE, tonight; DAYUM!" Tim yelled out as he approached her.

Brooke arched her eyebrow and gave him a look as she leaned against the kitchen counter. "Are you seriously hitting on me right now, Tim?"

Tim's eyes widened and she could see he was in a panic, "I, um, I.. I just wanted to tell you how great you looked."

Brooke smirked at him stumbling over his words, feeling proud of herself for being able to have that power. She waved her hand at him as if she was shooing him away. "Good-bye, Tim."

Tim walked away immediately and Brooke smirked to herself, taking a sip of her drink.

"Feeling proud of yourself, Davis? That was pretty bitchy, even for you." Nathan said as he came up behind her.

Brooke groaned and turned around. "Ugh! You again!"

Nathan laughed and said sarcastically, "Yep. Me again. Although I probably shouldn't be talking to you in plain view. Anyone might see us."

Brooke scoffed and rolled her eyes, "Don't even worry about that anymore, Scott. I dumped your dumbass brother before the game."

Nathan's face immediately filled with surprise, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Brooke shook her head, "No. Not really."

His eyes were still focused on hers. She didn't look too upset about the breakup, and he knew he was wrong to feel incredibly excited about their relationship ending. "Do you wanna step outside? Talk about other things?"

Brooke's eyes narrowed and she shook her head, "Not really, Nate." Her heart hammered inside her chest. She didn't want to speak to him about the kiss. It just made the rejection all too real. She didn't want to relive it again.

"Please?" Nathan asked softly and Brooke caved and nodded.

She walked outside with him into the cooler air and she shivered. He handed her his letterman jacket, even though she refused. She finally accepted his jacket and placed it around her shoulders. "Thanks."

Nathan nodded and sat down on a bench that sat outside. Brooke came and sat beside him, hugging the jacket to herself. The jacket smelled too much like him and it made her stomach clench. She loved that smell. It was so masculine, sweaty, woodsy, and full of spice from his cologne. It was his unique smell and Brooke couldn't ever get enough of it.

"Soo..." Brooke said as she attempted to break the ice.

"So you and Lucas are over, huh?" Nathan asked as he looked over at her.

Brooke didn't make eye contact with him, she watched the party through the windows of the house. "Yep." She popped the 'P'.

"For how long?" Nathan chuckled.

Brooke looked over at him this time and met his eyes. "I'm serious, Nate. I was stupid to take him back."

Nathan's eyes softened and his hand grazed down her back in attempt to comfort her. "Are you okay though?"

Brooke nodded. "As strange as it seems, I'm great. I've been in the best mood ever since I broke things off with him."

"Listen, Brooke.. About the kiss.." Nathan began and Brooke held her hand up to stop him.

"Don't, Nate. I'm sorry I kissed you. I was emotional and you were there. I know it's a poor excuse, but it's the best one I have." Brooke told him.

"That may be the best excuse you have, but it's not the truth." Nathan stated looking in her hazel eyes. Brooke's eyes flashed panic and she looked down at the ground. He reached over and placed two of his fingers beneath her chin and made her look up at him.

"What are you saying, Nathan?" Brooke whispered looking into his eyes. Nathan swallowed hard. He was just about to tell her how he had always been in love with her, but he heard loud cheers coming from the house.

Suddenly, Mouth ran outside, "Brooke! Nathan! Get inside! Now!"

Brooke and Nathan looked at each other and quickly ran into the beach house expecting to find someone in a fist fight. But that's not what they saw at all. Everyone was cheering, but they were all gathered around the TV. Brooke and Nathan pushed through the group of people and finally reached the screen. Brooke's eyes widened in horror.

 _Nathan's back was shown on the screen, completely covering her body. All you could hear was their kisses and their moans._

 _Brooke and Nathan sat up from the bed and Brooke motioned to the camera, "Hold on. I can't believe I'm doing this. I would die if anyone saw this, Nathan!"_

 _"Don't worry! No one will ever know!" Nathan reassured her and began kissing her again._

Brooke was frozen in shock and Nathan immediately went and unplugged the entire TV. Everyone was quiet, you could hear a pen drop in that room. Nathan slowly turned to Brooke and met her gaze. Her eyes were full of fire.

"How could you?! You promised that you destroyed that tape!" Brooke yelled at him with tears in her eyes.

Nathan closed his eyes and hung his head down in shame. "I'm sorry, Brooke."

"You're sorry?! You're SORRY?!" Brooke screamed, tears burning through, blurring her vision.

Peyton walked over to Brooke and stood directly in front of her. "Please tell me I didn't just see my best friend hooking up with my then-boyfriend."

Brooke shook her head, "I'm sorry, Peyton."

Peyton punched Brooke, causing Brooke to fall backwards, but Nathan was there to catch her before she hit the floor.

"Are you insane?!" Nathan yelled at Peyton as he helped Brooke get back onto her feet. Brooke slapped his hands away.

"Fuck off, Nathan. This is between me and this little slut." Peyton growled.

Brooke cupped her eye, but that comment set her off. She would finally wash her hands of both Lucas AND Peyton tonight. "I'm the slut?! At least you two were broken up at the time! You had no problem cheating with my boyfriend not just under one circumstance, but TWO while I WAS WITH HIM! So who's really the slut, Peyton?"

Peyton took a step back, clearly hurt. "I've done told you I was sorry."

Brooke nodded. "Yeah. But you know what, Peyton? I just don't care. You have no right to get pissed at me for fucking Nathan." Brooke punched her back, hard across the face and Peyton went flying backwards.

Nathan jumped in between them. "Okay. Peyton got her shot in. Brooke retaliated. I think it's fair. Let's break it up."

"Actually, it's been three circumstances," Mouth spoke up. "I'm sorry, Brooke. I wanted to tell you, but Lucas threatened to kick my ass. I caught them in the janitor's closet the day after he sang to you in the gym."

Brooke started to breathe heavily and sent a glare Lucas' way but he hung his head, avoiding eye contact with her. Brooke then glared over at Peyton, who was clutching her face. "And you have the nerve to call me a slut." Brooke scoffed.

Brooke attempted to walk over to Peyton one last time, but Nathan held her back. The fact that Nathan was holding her back pissed her off. So she slapped him hard across the face. Nathan looked at her surprised. "What the hell, Brooke?!"

"That's for being a Scott. You're just like him." Brooke bit out.

"And as for you?" Brooke walked directly in front of Peyton and punched her hard again. "Don't ever hit me again. Whore."

Lucas finally spoke up, "Is this why you dumped me? For Nathan?"

Brooke laughed, "No honey. I broke up with you for other reasons and you know exactly what they are." Lucas' face paled and she knew she had him.

Brooke looked around at her classmates, all with shocked and surprised faces. She smirked. "Do you want to know another secret?"

Everyone remained quiet, but Brooke continued anyway. "You know how Mouth said Lucas threatened him and said he would kick his ass? Well, Lucas was also treating me the same way. He's grabbed me, slammed me against walls, held me by my throat. Oh, and not to forget the black eye he gave me when he heard I spoke to Nathan at school."

Everyone gasped and spoke in whispers and Brooke looked over to Lucas. Lucas' eyes were extremely dark and for once she wasn't scared. She stared at him in a way that said "try me". Nathan took a step toward Brooke.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Nathan asked.

Brooke glared at him and didn't respond.

"I saw the bruises and I confronted you. Why did you lie to me?!" Nathan yelled at her.

"Why did you lie to me?" Brooke asked in a whisper and walked out of the house.

* * *

"So it's been you this whole time?" Nathan growled out as he approached his brother.

"Dude, it's clear she's lying. She lied about sleeping with you, what else is she lying about? That's what whores do. They lie." Lucas laughed in response.

Nathan saw red. He punched Lucas hard and Lucas flew backwards into the wall behind him. He immediately recovered and charged for Nathan. They fell backwards in a brawl as they fought for dominance. Lucas got a few punches in, but Nathan came out on top. Nathan steadily kept punching him. Over and over he punched him. He couldn't seem to stop. How dare he lay his hands on Brooke? His Brooke? He kept punching him until he felt himself being pulled off.

"Nate, man. He's unconscious. Stop." Skills told him as he pulled Nathan off the still body.

Everyone was silent and Peyton ran over to Lucas, shrieking in panic. "Lucas! Please wake up baby!"

Nathan heard everyone's voices, but it was extremely fuzzy. He felt anger within himself that he had never felt before. He had a hunch that Lucas had been hurting Brooke, but now he knew his suspicions had cause. That beating wasn't enough. No, Lucas Scott didn't pay nearly enough. Still: all he saw was red.

* * *

 **Please review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and followed this story! You rock! :) This may be my last update for the next few weeks, but I promise I will be back!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7:**

* * *

Nathan stood there breathing heavily as everyone around him stared silently. Sirens were wailing from a distance and everyone took that as their cue to get going. Nathan sat down on the couch across from Lucas' still body and waited for the paramedics to come bursting in. Bevin had called 911 after Skills announced Lucas was unconscious. Everyone was freaking out since the party was full of underage drinking so they slowly dispersed from the party in fear of getting into trouble.

The paramedics immediately came rushing in and focused their attention on Lucas.

"What happened here?" A blonde paramedic asked as she instantly got to work checking for Lucas' pulse.

"He's my brother. We got into a fight." Nathan said barely about a whisper.

The blonde looked at him surprised and looked to the red-headed male paramedic that assisted her. "We've got a pulse! What's his name?"

"Lucas Scott," Peyton told her.

"Lucas, can you hear me?" The blonde paramedic rubbed his cheek to wake him.

"Uh..." Lucas groaned out.

"Go get the stretcher. We've got to get him to the hospital. He's conscious, but I'm not sure of the extent of his injuries." The blonde instructed the driver of the ambulance who immediately ran outside to get the stretcher.

The blonde paramedic looked to Nathan, "Any medical conditions we should be aware of? Allergies?"

"He has HCM," Nathan replied.

The blonde nodded and the stretcher was being brought into the living room. The red-headed paramedic assisted her as the three of them picked Lucas up and placed him on the stretcher. They strapped him to the stretcher and rolled him out to the ambulance, Peyton jumping in with him before they pulled out of the drive heading for the hospital.

"Nathan Scott?"

Nathan turned around and saw three policeman ready to question him. Nathan didn't even resist.

"Yes sir, I'm Nathan," he replied.

"I'm Deputy Chris Black with Tree Hill Police. We'd like to ask you a few questions if that's okay with you." He said.

Nathan nodded, but Dan entered the living room. "What the hell happened, Nate?"

"Excuse me Mr. Scott, but we're trying to find out what happened." Chris told Dan.

"With all due respect, so am I. I have one son on his way to the hospital and I want to know why." Dan snapped at the cop.

"Dad, it's fine," Nathan told his father before directing his gaze back to the police. "Look, my brother has been beating his girlfriend, who's also my friend. I've been noticing bruises on her the last couple of weeks, but she finally admitted tonight that he's the reason for them. I snapped. We got into a fight and my memory is blurred from there."

"What?!" Dan yelled, his eyes angry.

"I'm sorry, dad, I just lost it." Nathan apologized, shaking his head and looking down the floor.

"No, son. I'm angry with your brother, not you." Dan assured him as he put his hand on Nathan's shoulder.

"And what's your friend's name?" Deputy Black asked as he was writing every bit of information down.

"Brooke Davis," Nathan replied.

"And you say that your brother, Lucas Scott, has been beating her?"

"Yes sir." Nathan replied.

"Can you explain the bruises?" Deputy Black asked.

"She had one on her right arm, sir. I noticed as she was putting books in her locker. The bruise was shaped like fingers, but when I asked her about it, she claimed she ran into a doorway."

"And when was this?"

"Tuesday. Two weeks ago." Nathan answered.

"Have you noticed anything else?" Deputy Black asked Nathan.

"Thursday of that week. She wasn't at school so I went to check on her. So I drove over to her house and she had a huge black eye. Her right one. She claimed she fell down the stairs." Nathan explained softly. "I knew someone was hurting her, but she wouldn't tell me who. I knew she wasn't that clumsy. She still maintained that she fell down the stairs. And when I accused her of lying, she threw me out of her house."

Deputy Black wrote every detail down on his notepad. "And you said she admitted that it was Lucas that had been hurting her?"

"Yes sir. She admitted it in front of the entire party." Nathan replied.

Deputy Black nodded to the other two officers with him and took a look around at the party cups littered on the floor and the keg sitting in the kitchen.

"Have you been drinking?" Deputy Black asked.

"Chris, can we discuss this outside?" Dan asked him and led the officers through the door. Nathan watched them discussing the matter through the window and it didn't take long until Dan shook their hands and walked back inside.

"Thank you for answering our questions, Nathan. We will call you if we should need anything else." Deputy Black told me and then turned to Dan.

"We'll be questioning Miss Davis and Lucas when he regains consciousness." He told him.

Dan nodded. "Just let me know if you need anything."

The cops left and Dan looked over to Nathan. "Let's head to the hospital."

* * *

Nathan sat down in the waiting room while Peyton sat across from him, staring him down. He tried to avoid meeting her eyes, but finally it was too much. It was starting to piss him off.

"What?!" He snapped.

"How could you do this to your own brother?" Peyton asked as she continued to glare at him.

"Peyton, stay out of this." Nathan replied.

"Your brother loves you, Nathan. And you beat him down because of Brooke?" Peyton asked.

"He had it coming. He has been hurting Brooke, Peyton. I know that's hard for you to believe since you're so delusional in Lucas world, but he did it." He replied.

"I'm delusional in Lucas world? Why would you believe Brooke over your brother? She could be lying!" Peyton replied angrily.

"I saw the bruises, Peyton! And besides, I trust Brooke! She wouldn't lie about something like that!" Nathan snapped back.

"She wouldn't lie about something like that? She apparently told you one story of how she got the bruises, but then told a different story at the party? I specifically remember you asking her why she lied to you. She's a liar, Nathan. You don't know what to believe." Peyton pointed out.

"I believe her," Nathan said sternly, his fists clenching by his sides.

"Oh my God," Peyton breathed out.

"What?!" Nathan snapped.

"You're in love with her, aren't you?" Peyton asked.

Nathan stood up, ready for the conversation to end. "You need to shut your mouth, Peyton. You shouldn't speak when you don't know shit."

* * *

Nathan walked down the hall to where Dan and Karen were pacing, waiting to hear the news of Lucas' condition.

"Any news?" Nathan asked.

"Not yet. They're still working on him. He's alive though." Dan answered him.

"Dad, I am sorry." Nathan apologized to his father again.

"I'm disappointed that it had to come to this, because after all it is your brother. But if he really did do this Nathan, you have nothing to be sorry for." Dan replied and hugged Nathan.

"Are you sure though, honey?" Karen asked concerned. "I wouldn't think Lucas would do something like this."

"Brooke admitted it to the entire party. I trust her." Nathan replied softly and Karen nodded.

"I just can't believe this.." Karen whispered as her eyes filled up with tears. Dan reached over to his wife to comfort her.

"Parent of Lucas Scott?" A man wearing a white coat addressed them as he walked out the door.

"Yes." Dan and Karen answered in unison.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Brent Williams. Lucas is still unconscious. We're going to take him down for a few X-Rays, but he appears to have quite a few facial fractures. He has an eye socket fracture in both eyes that doesn't appear to be troubling. He just has two black eyes. He had a broken nose, which we've reset back into place. But he also looks to have a broken jaw that will require surgery. He also has a few lacerations to his cheek and lip."

Dan and Karen looked at each other in surprise, "But he's going to be okay?" Karen asked.

"Yes. Your son should be fine. We will know more after we get the X-Ray results. But if he should require surgery, I need permission."

"Do everything you can to help him," Karen replied softly, clutching to Dan's side.

* * *

"Damn, son. You gave your brother quite the ass beating." Dan told him as he sat down in the cafeteria.

Nathan chuckled. "Is it bad that I don't feel guilty? I feel like I should have done more."

"I do feel a little badly because he is my son, but I can't get over the fact that he hurt Brooke that way. I could tell something was off when I had a talk with him regarding Brooke's black eye." Dan told him.

Nathan nodded. "I knew it. I knew it all along and I didn't help her."

"But she told you it was because of an accident. Don't beat yourself up over it, son." Dan said as he patted Nathan's shoulder.

"Thanks, dad. Really." Nathan replied and smiled at his father.

"I love you, son. I would do anything in the world for you, I hope you know that." Dan told him.

"I love you too, dad." Nathan replied.

"Is it okay if I drive over to Brooke's? I want to check on her." Nathan asked.

"Sure, son. Please tell her that your mom and I are sorry for Lucas' actions." Dan told him.

* * *

Nathan drove over to Brooke's house and ran up to her door, knocking consistently until the door flew open and Brooke's angry face was glaring at him.

"Why in the hell did three police officers just show up at my door?! Asking me if Lucas has been beating me up?! Oh, and not to mention the fact that you put him in the hospital?!" Brooke screamed at him.

"You're stupid!" Brooke pushed him. Every insult she threw at him, she lashed out at him in the process.

"You're such an idiot!" She pushed him again.

"Yes. Brooke. I am stupid." Nathan replied, letting her push him.

Brooke looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "You are, Scott. Why didn't you destroy the tape?"

"Brooke.." Nathan choked on his words. Could he really tell her the truth after everything that's happened?

"Did you really want to embarrass me that badly, Nate? You knew that tape would destroy me." Brooke said softly.

"I didn't destroy the tape because I needed to somehow keep evidence that it actually happened.." Nathan whispered looking down, not meeting her eyes.

"What?" Brooke asked confused.

"The night we had together, Brooke... that tape is the only evidence that it happened. We've never discussed that night since. We went on with our lives like it never happened." Nathan replied.

"We've brought it up, Nathan."

"Sarcastic remarks about our 'drunken encounter' when no one is around doesn't count, Brooke. I mean an actual conversation about what happened between us that night."

"What happened between us exactly, Nathan? It was sex." Brooke shrugged.

"Was it though? Just sex?" Nathan asked.

Brooke shrugged. "I don't know."

Nathan nodded.

Brooke changed the subject. "Why did you beat Lucas unconscious tonight?"

"Because he had it coming, Brooke. He was hurting you. Why didn't you tell me?" His eyes were full of hurt and that made Brooke's heart clench.

"I don't know. Fear you wouldn't believe me? I didn't want Lucas to get in trouble? A lot of factors went into it.." Brooke said softly.

Nathan cupped her cheeks and made her look at him. "Hey. I want to get one thing straight, okay? I will always believe you, Brooke. Always. You can always come to me for anything. I will always be there for you, Brooke. I will always protect you."

Brooke's breath caught in the back of her throat and her eyes filled with tears.

"I will always protect you," Nathan replied. "Always. I promise."

Tears fell from Brooke's eyes and Nathan wiped them away with his thumbs.

"And why would you do that?" Brooke whispered.

"Because... Brooke... I'm in love with you. I've been in love with you. I always crushed on you before that night at the beach house, but after that night it quickly turned into something deeper. And then you got into a relationship with my brother. But trust me when I say this... I've been in love with you since that night and I've never stopped. That's why I didn't destroy the tape. That's why I was angry that you took Lucas back. That's why I beat him when I found out he hurt you." Nathan replied honestly.

"What?" Brooke exhaled a breath she didn't know she was holding. "I thought that night didn't mean anything to you?"

Nathan shook his head, "It meant everything, Brooke."

"Why did you push me away when I tried to kiss you then?" Brooke asked quietly.

"Because I knew you were hurting and were trying to avoid the conversation. I wanted to kiss you, Brooke. Trust me. I just didn't want to take advantage of you."

"What about now?" Brooke asked him, her hazel eyes shining into his royal blues.

Nathan smiled down at her and ran a hand through her hair, pushing it away from her face as he leaned down and softly kissed her lips. Brooke melted into the kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck. Nathan's hands found their way to her waist and he pulled her even closer. She had forgotten how it felt to be in Nathan's arms and she couldn't imagine feeling any safer than she felt in them. That's where she wanted to be. He eventually broke the kiss and pressed his forehead against hers. Oh yes, Brooke Davis could definitely stay like this.

* * *

 **Please review and let me know what you think!**

 **Nathan telling Brooke he'll always be there for her and always protect her came from the episode where Haley is scared they've made a mistake getting married because they don't have any doubles of CD's. I just switched it to where he said it to Brooke! :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: I'm back lovelies! I'm so sorry for my absence, but I'm hoping this chapter makes up for my disappearance! A lot has been going on and I just haven't found the time until now! Thank you so much for being patient! I hope you enjoy and as always, please review! :)**

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

* * *

 _Four days later_

"Nate? Do you know where my binder is? I can't find it anywhere!" Brooke yelled for him as she searched every place she remembered having it. She ran her hands through her hair in frustration and huffed at herself, throwing her hair over one shoulder. She couldn't keep her life together and school was never something she was organized in. Karen had been gracious enough to let her miss the past two days of school because she wasn't ready to face anyone and Nathan was helping her catch up. She laughed at the thought because Nathan was anything but an academic scholar.

Nathan came up behind her as she was searching the kitchen counter and handed it to her. "Here you go! You left it in my room."

Brooke smiled at him and gratefully took it from him. Ever since the incident with Lucas, Brooke admitted to Nathan she didn't feel safe staying at home alone. When Nathan explained this to Dan and Karen, they were more than willing to offer Brooke the spare bedroom. She had been staying with them ever since, although Brooke and Nathan kept the nature of their "friendship" under wraps.

"You kids better hurry up! You're going to be late." Karen smiled at them. She loved having another woman in the house, and of course, it helped that she had always adored Brooke Davis. She watched the two walk out of the house and drive away in Nathan's mustang. She knew Nathan had always had a crush on Brooke and felt sorry for her son. Brooke had always been completely oblivious of Nathan's growing feelings and went after Lucas instead. She had always felt Lucas and Brooke weren't a great match. Her heart broke for Brooke for having to experience what she did at the hands of her older son. She still couldn't wrap her head around it.

* * *

Lucas sat up in his hospital bed as the nurse informed him he had a visitor. He hoped it would be Brooke. He hoped she had finally come to her senses and was wanting to tell him how sorry she was for making a scene at the party. But, those hopes were ultimately crushed when he saw the tall figure standing in the doorway.

"Hello son," Dan acknowledged him as he walked through the doorway and shut the door behind him.

"Hi dad." Lucas replied.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better. I'm not as sore and the black eyes are fading. Doc said the surgery went great and everything is healing up nicely. I'm ready to go home."

Dan shook his head as he gripped the foot of the hospital bed. "Lucas, you will not set foot back into my house."

Lucas' eyes widened and he protested, "But dad! I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Don't lie to me, son. I've put up with an awful lot of your shit, don't you dare lie to me now!" Dan's voice was raised.

Lucas looked down at his hands and looked back up at his father, tears filling his eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize to me. You need to be apologizing to Brooke, but you are not to come near her anymore." Dan said with a stern look on his face.

"Dad, I want to come home. I'm sorry I made a mistake." Lucas' tears were now falling down onto his cheeks.

"No, son. A mistake is something that's unintentional, something that just happens. You made a choice. You made a choice to be a selfish boy who only thinks of himself. You chose to lay your hands on Brooke. You chose to be an abusive bastard. You chose to no longer be a son of mine."

Lucas' eyes were once again widened in panic, "You're saying I'm not your son anymore?"

Dan smirked and shook his head. "No. You're not my son anymore."

"So that's just it? You're kicking me out of the family?"

"No, son. I told you what would happen if I ever found out that you had hurt a woman. You made that choice on your own." Dan said as he walked around the room and stood by the window looking out at the traffic passing by. The sun was shining without a cloud in the sky, a beautiful day in North Carolina.

"I'm going to talk to Brooke whether you like it or not. You can't control who I speak to." Lucas snapped.

Dan turned around and faced Lucas slowly, walking over to him in soft steps. Lucas looked up at his father in curiosity, but was shocked when he felt a strong hand gripping his newly sewn-together jaw. Lucas winced from the pain, but Dan didn't let up his grip.

"Now, you listen to me. Do NOT challenge me. I'm a very powerful man and if I don't want you talking to Brooke, you will not speak to her. So help me God Lucas, you don't want to test me. If I find out you're doing anything to hurt her, I promise you I will do more than hurt your pretty, fragile jaw." Dan said lowly, a dark look spreading over his eyes. A look Lucas had never seen before in all his life.

"Do you understand me?!" Dan bit out as he gripped Lucas' jaw harder and Lucas nodded and sighed in relief when Dan finally let him go.

As soon as Dan let Lucas go, a knock sounded from the door. They both looked as it opened and the nurse came in wheeling a food tray.

"Time for lunch, Mr. Scott. Gotta get your strength up if you want to leave soon! And later this afternoon, the police will be here to ask you a few questions if you're feeling up to it." The nurse smiled kindly.

Lucas looked to his father, but Dan was smirking back at him. Lucas gulped. His father wasn't going to get him out of this. His father had washed his hands of him completely. Made sense since Nathan had always been the favorite. Dan invested his time in Nathan more than he ever did with Lucas and for that, Lucas had always felt jealous.

"Excuse me," Dan politely excused himself as he walked out of the room.

Lucas watched his father walk out of the room without a second glance. His eyes narrowed. He knew exactly what he needed to do then.

"Do you think you can go ahead and tell the police to come by? I'm feeling a lot better now and would like to give my statement."

If Dan Scott wanted to play a game, then Lucas knew just how to hit him where it hurts.

* * *

Brooke and Nathan walked side-by-side into the school as everyone turned to look at her. People were flicking together, whispering back and forth, their eyes never leaving Brooke.

"I don't like this.." Brooke whispered to him.

"Screw them! It's okay, I'm right here." Nathan told her as he placed his hand on her lower back, guiding her through the hallway. Brooke relaxed at the feel of his touch and took a deep breath as she reached her locker.

"Yo, Davis!" Skills shouted as he and Bevin began to make their way over to her. Nathan took a step closer to Brooke. He knew Skills was close to Lucas and he was unsure of how this conversation was going to go.

Brooke sighed and her shoulders slumped as she closed her locker and turned to face Skills. Nathan's hand was laid possessively on her lower back. "Hey Skills."

"How are you feeling, baby girl?" He hugged her.

Brooke smiled at the nickname he had given her and quickly relaxed, realizing he wasn't here for a confrontation. "I'm great, a little nervous about being back here, but great."

"Don't even worry about it, girl. We've got your back."

Brooke smiled at him as he held his fist up to bump hers. She quickly responded to the gesture by bumping her fist against his and laughed.

"Yeah, Brooke. Slap the bitches and kick the men in the balls!" Bevin said enthusiastically which made everyone laugh around her.

"Yeah, what she said. I mean it Davis. I didn't know Luke man was doing that to you. That's not cool. So if you need anything, I just want you to know I'm here."

Brooke smiled at Skills and nodded her head. "Thanks you guys!"

Skills and Bevin walked away and Brooke could see Peyton glaring at her from across the hallway. When Brooke met her eyes, Peyton looked away, slamming her locker in the process and walking away. Brooke sighed. She would never be friends with her again. She dates Lucas? Peyton goes behind her back to be with him. She admits Lucas abuses her? Peyton still defends him. It's clear that Lucas was the only person she cared about after all. At least she had Nate.

She looked up at Nathan and smiled when she saw he was staring at her. He bent down to kiss her, but her eyes went wide and she took a step back. Brooke saw hurt flash through his eyes and she quickly apologized.

"I'm sorry, Nate. I just didn't want us to come out this soon. I want the whole mess with Lucas to blow over and I'm not sure what your parents might think about us being together, you know?"

Nathan swallowed and nodded. Lucas was gone, but he still ruled Brooke. He hated his brother more than ever. "Yeah. Sure. Listen, I have to get to class. I'll see you at home."

"Nate," Brooke said softly as she reached out for him, but he walked away. Brooke felt tears pricking her eyes, but she blinked them away. She was not going to cry over this. She just felt like everything around her was swallowing her up and she had no escape. She began to feel overwhelmed and Nathan was her escape. He couldn't be angry with her too.

Brooke held her books to her chest as she walked to her class, entering right before the bell rang.

* * *

Basketball practice was hell. Watching her cheer in those short shorts was pure hell. He knew she had a reasonable explanation on why she didn't want to go public yet. He knew he had no reason to be angry. He felt like in some way, she was still choosing Lucas over him again. But he knew deep down, Brooke would choose him any day of the week.

He dribbled the ball as he watched her cheer with her blue Pom-Poms and smiled. He saw Skills on the left trying to steal the ball away from him so he quickly passed the ball to Jake on the right. He escaped Skills' block and ran to an open area as Jake passed the ball back to him. He saw Skills coming after him again so he quickly dribbled the ball to the hoop and dunked it into the net, holding onto the rim as the ball fell straight through it. Everyone in the gym cheered and Brooke grinned at Nathan when he caught her staring at him. He began walking over to her to apologize, but was stopped when he heard his name being called.

"Nathan Scott?"

Nathan turned around to see two police officers standing at the other side of the gym. Nathan's heart plummeted into the gym floor as they walked over to him. The whole gym went quiet, everyone paused.

"Yes, I'm Nathan."

"Will you please turn around and place your hands behind your back?"

"What?! What's going on?!" Nathan raised his voice in panic. Whitey began making his way over to the scene.

"Please turn around and place your hands behind your back," the police officer repeated and Nathan did so.

"You don't have to arrest him here in this gym. If he's willing to go with you, then just take him outside to the car. There's no need to embarrass the boy," Whitey came to Nathan's defense.

"It's standard procedure, sir."

The police officer began tightening handcuffs around Nathan's wrists. "You're under the arrest for the assault of Lucas Scott. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you?"

"Yes." Nathan responded quietly. It was then that Brooke ran over to him.

"Oh my God, Nathan!"

"I'll be fine. Go home and tell my dad what happened. Lucas is pressing charges. Tell him to call our lawyer and get to the police station as soon as possible."

* * *

 **So what do you guys think? Please review! :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: I didn't get any reviews for last chapter, so I'm not exactly sure if y'all enjoyed it! But I still feel inspired to write so here's another! Please review and let me know if you're enjoying the story! It would really make my day! :)**

 **WARNING! This chapter is Rated M!**

* * *

 **Chapter 9**

* * *

"So you never abused Miss Davis? Not in any form?" Detective Rutledge asked, his green eyes focused on Lucas, notepad in hand. His name badge sat proudly on his uniform.

Lucas was sat in the green guest chair of his hospital room, Peyton sitting on the arm of it, her armed wrapped around him. "No, sir. I've never harmed Brooke. Have you questioned her already?"

"Yes, Miss Davis has been questioned. She claims that you had been hurting her. However, when we asked her to come down to the station to photograph any physical evidence, none was found." Detective Rutledge knew either Lucas was telling the truth or Brooke's bruises had already healed. He had a gut feeling that Brooke was telling the truth, but he had to go with what evidence he had. And it wasn't much.

"Exactly. Lucas would never hurt Brooke," Peyton stated firmly as her arm around Lucas tightened. Lucas lifted his hand to his shoulder and rested on the top of hers.

"So what happened at the party?" Detective Rutledge asked.

Lucas sighed. "You see, sir.. Nathan has always been jealous of Brooke and I. The entire time I've dated Brooke, Nathan has had a crush on her. I've noticed Brooke and Nathan getting closer over the last month and I realized they were plotting against me. The story of abuse, announcing it to the entire party, Nathan assaulting me. All of it was one big plan. One big plan to ruin my reputation."

Detective Rutledge nodded. "I see. So you think this was all premeditated?"

"I really do. I hate to think my girlfriend and brother hate me this much, but I guess they do. I've never hurt anyone in my life. You have to believe me." Lucas said softly, trying to seem believable.

"I do, Mr. Scott."

"Brooke also had plans to ruin me... I cheated on her with her best friend, Peyton. She wanted to hurt me because I had hurt her. That's why she conjured up the story that I was abusing her.

Detective Rutledge nodded.

"One more thing... How can I go about pressing charges?"

Detective Rutledge's eyes went wide in surprise, "You're wanting to have your brother arrested?"

"Well yes. He schemed to ruin me. I want to ruin him." Lucas replied simply.

"If that's something you truly want to do, Mr. Scott, then yes. We'll have it taken care of."

"I want my brother arrested. As soon as possible."

* * *

"I know you previously spoke with Deputy Chris Black on the scene. Can you recount the events of the night of the party again for me?" Detective Rutledge asked.

"I've already told you. I had noticed bruises on Brooke and assumed Lucas had been hurting her. Finally, Brooke admitted it to the entire party. After she confessed, she left. I approached Lucas and he denied all of it. Called Brooke a whore and I snapped."

"We examined Miss Davis. There wasn't any evidence of abuse on her person. But you admit to the assault of your brother, Lucas Scott?" Detective Rutledge asked as he leaned forward, ready to wrap up the case.

"I need my lawyer. Am I allowed a phone call? I need to call my dad." Nathan responded, his forehead wrinkling in worry.

Detective Rutledge sat back in his chair and sighed. "Alright, Mr. Scott. If that's how it's going to be. It's going to be a long night."

* * *

Brooke sped home in Nathan's mustang, the tires squealing as she pulled the car into the driveway of the Scott home. She jumped out of the car and ran for the front door, but it opened as she reached for the doorknob.

"Oh my God! Dan! Nathan's been arrested! He needs our help!" Brooke panicked.

"We know, honey. We know. Why don't you go inside and make yourself some tea and relax? I promise this will be fixed. We've called our lawyer and he's meeting us at the police station. We will bring Nathan home." Karen said softly as she rubbed Brooke's shoulders in attempt to keep her calm.

"Okay, thanks Karen. Just... if you need anything, please let me know. I want Nathan to come home." Brooke replied. Karen nodded and jogged over to the car, Dan waiting for her with the car already running. As soon as she shut the door, the car was immediately backed down the driveway and took off so quickly it made the tires squeal.

Brooke sighed and made her way inside the Scott home. She sat her bag down and slumped to the floor, her back against the door. She hated this. She felt like it was all her fault. She should have never told anyone Lucas had been hurting her! She knew better. She was stronger than this. She could feel the heat of her tears forming in her eyes, threatening to spill over. Brooke pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. She couldn't fight the tears anymore. She finally let go and cried into her lap, her arms still clutching around her knees. Nathan had to come home. He just had to.

Brooke paced around the kitchen, watching the clock with every step. Her hands began to fidget and her stomach began to feel nauseous. 10:45. Dan and Karen still weren't home, so that had to be a good sign, right? Maybe they will let him come home? Brooke couldn't sleep, she couldn't even think. Her mind was on Nathan and how she could fix this.

An hour had passed by and Brooke sat at the kitchen counter reading a magazine to take her mind off things, but of course it didn't work. 11:45. Almost midnight. What the hell was taking so long?! Brooke's phone beeped, alerting her that she had received a text message. She immediately jumped up and opened the text.

 _If I know you as well as I think I do, you're probably still awake in worry. Go to bed, Brooke. Everything will be just fine. Get some rest. We'll see you in the morning. - Karen_

Brooke smiled. Karen really did know her well. Karen was the closest thing to a real mother that she had. She wasn't sure which country Victoria was in now. She never had that special relationship between mother and daughter and always craved for it. She wanted a mother like Karen.

Brooke walked up the stairs and stood in front of the door to her bedroom. She stopped once she reached for the doorknob and turned her focus to the bedroom across the hall from her. Nathan's bedroom. She dropped her hand from turning the doorknob to her room, turned around and opened Nathan's instead. She was immediately greeted by the scent of Nathan. It was completely Nathan and it made her heart flutter. She sat down on the edge of his unmade bed and laid down across it, staring at the ceiling. His bed smelled like him and for that, she didn't want to leave. She felt safe here in his room.

She sat up and began looking around his room. She had been in there dozens of times since she moved in, but she never got to actually look around. She looked at all of the trophies that lined the bookshelf and ran her finger across the numerous medals he received over the years. She noticed a book that was sat behind one of the trophies, blending in so it wasn't easily seen. Curious, she grabbed it. She opened it and began flipping through the pages filled with Nathan's handwriting. But what she found in the middle of the book made her gasp. It was a picture of her. She remembered taking this picture. Leaned against the lockers. No cheerleading top, only Pom-Poms to cover her breasts. She smiled at the discovery.

 _January 13th_

 _I don't usually keep journals. I've always thought they were pretty lame. But I don't really have anyone I can talk to. I just want something to be an outlet for my feelings and thoughts. Why do I feel this way about her? Why is she with him? What does she see in him? I'd give anything to run my fingers through her brown hair and look into those hazel eyes. She's never looked at me as more than a friend, and I know that. I can't say it doesn't hurt though. Why can't I have what he has? Why is this so fucking unfair?_

Brooke swallowed back tears and slammed the book shut. Brown hair and hazel eyes. He had to have been writing about her. Why didn't she see it before? Why didn't she notice the way he felt about her? Brooke shut the journal softly and gently placed it back on the shelf where it belonged, hidden behind the trophies. She took one last look around the room before she shut the light off and closed the door behind her. She walked across the hall and entered her room to get ready for bed, although she knew sleep wouldn't come anytime soon.

* * *

 _Meanwhile..._

After Nathan was arrested in the gym, they took him to the One Tree Hill Police Department and questioned and booked him. He told them the same story over and over again, the truth. They advised they didn't find any bruising on Brooke. Then they told him about Lucas' statement that lead to his arrest. At that point, Nathan leaned back in his chair in desperation. He told them he wanted to speak to his attorney immediately.

Nathan sat in the jail cell, his back pressed against the cold concrete wall. He sighed. His brother had done a lot of fucked up shit, but he never knew he'd go this far. Telling the police that him and Brooke conjured this story up to ruin his reputation? He just couldn't wrap his mind around it. He was only a junior in high school and he had been arrested. Granted, he did mess Lucas up pretty badly, but he had it coming. The scouts. College basketball. Nathan's stomach dropped. What would happen once they found out about this? Nathan closed his eyes and rested his head against the concrete wall behind him. He wondered what Brooke was doing now.

His attorney, Brad Jones, had shown up and was currently talking with the police. They allowed him and Nathan to speak privately for about 15 minutes and Nathan laid it all out on the table. Brad admitted to Nathan that it didn't look good for him because Lucas did have hard evidence, whereas Brooke did not. But he assured him that he would do everything he could.

"Nathan Scott?" A hefty police officer called from around the corner.

Nathan stood up and approached the iron bars, "Yes sir."

The officer began unlocking the cell door, "You've posted bail. You're free to go."

Nathan sighed in relief and followed the officer to retrieve his belongings before being reunited with his parents. Karen's face was full of worry and Dan's was full of sorrow.

Karen rushed to Nathan and pulled him into a hug, "Nathan! Are you alright?"

"I've been better," Nathan chuckled, trying to keep the mood light.

"We're sorry it took so long, son. The police were being very thorough and dragging their asses," Dan huffed.

"It's alright. I'm just glad you guys came to get me. How's Brooke?"

"She's at the house. She's worried. But she's gone to bed. You'll see her in the morning," Karen replied as she rubbed Nathan's shoulders before hugging him again.

"Brad said he's going to do everything he can to make sure your court date goes as smooth as possible. He said Lucas doesn't stand a chance," Dan informed Nathan.

Nathan nodded and his eyebrow wrinkled as he took a deep breath. "I'm still worried. I did put him in the hospital."

"It'll be alright, son. Let's get you home."

* * *

1:23. Brooke laid in bed staring at her alarm clock. Those big, ugly red numbers were taunting her. What was taking so long? She pulled out her phone to send a quick text to Karen, but she paused when she saw the light from a car's headlights entering her room through the window. Brooke smiled and jumped to look out the window. It was them. When she saw only Karen and Dan exit the vehicle, her stomach dropped. But then another car door opened and Nathan stepped out and relief filled her body. She quickly laid back down in her bed knowing that Karen would be checking up on her soon. She didn't want Karen scolding her for being up so late and she knew everyone must be exhausted. She would wait for everyone to settle down before she made her move.

It took about 20 minutes before the house went quiet again. She had been correct in thinking that Karen would open her bedroom door to check on her. Brooke pretended she was fast asleep until the door closed again. After 20 minutes of waiting, Brooke slipped out of bed and slowly made her way to her bedroom door, tiptoeing through the room. She gently closed the door and snuck to the door across the room. She wiped her hands on her night-dress from being sweaty. She was incredibly nervous and her palms were sweating. She prayed the door wouldn't creak, and to her luck, it didn't.

The room was dark. There was a fan going so it provided some noise into the bedroom. She made her way to his bed and slowly reached out for him.

"Nate?" She whispered.

"Hey gorgeous," Nathan whispered back and Brooke leapt into his arms, hugging him tightly.

"Are you okay?" Brooke whispered as tears pricked her eyes.

"I'm much better now," Nathan replied as he held her face in his hands and kissed her all over her face.

Brooke sighed and relaxed against him, "I was so worried about you. What happened?"

"Well. First off, I did get arrested and I'm being charged with assault. Second, I do have to attend court next month. My parents bailed me out."

"So you're a criminal? I kinda find that sexy," Brooke smirked at him, attempting to make him smile. It worked.

"Oh really now? Well do you know what I find sexy?" Nathan teased her.

Brooke decided to play along and smiled, "I have no idea, Mr. Scott. Please enlighten me."

Nathan sat up and pushed Brooke down onto the bed beneath him. The moonlight coming through the window cascaded upon her features and Nathan felt his heart clench. She was the most gorgeous creature he had ever laid eyes on.

He leaned down and caught Brooke's lips in a soft kiss. His lips softly brushed against hers and he began peppering kisses from her mouth to her shoulder. "You. It's always been you."

Brooke felt tears pricking the corners of her eyes again at the sound of his confession. "I don't know how I didn't see... I'm so sorry."

"I have you now. That's all that matters. And I'm never letting you go."

"Please don't." Brooke whispered back before she pressed her lips against his in a deeper kiss than before. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him even closer to her. He settled himself in between her legs and Brooke wrapped her legs around him. Nathan's hands pushed Brooke's night-dress up to her hips and caressed her thighs before cupping her ass, his lips never moving away from hers. Brooke could feel herself grow hotter by the second, and when she felt his excitement growing through his boxers, she was seeping.

Brooke attacked Nathan's neck as she ground her center against his erection.

"Brooke, baby." Nathan breathed out.

Brooke didn't respond. She kept grinding herself against him, her lips and tongue tasting his skin.

"Brooke," Nathan repeated and finally Brooke snapped her head to look him in the eyes.

"Not right now. Not here. Our first time was when we were drunk at a party. I want it to be different the next time." Nathan explained.

Brooke's eyes softened and she kissed him again. "But we are different, Nate. I love you."

Nathan's heart soared. "I love you, Brooke."

"Then show me."

Nathan looked down at her beautiful face, "Are you sure? Here with my parents down the hall?"

Brooke bit her lip and nodded. "I think that's what makes it hotter. The fact that we can be caught at any second."

"Fuck Brooke, you're going to be the death of me." Nathan growled softly as he grabbed her wrists and pinned her to the bed. Brooke jerked her hips forward to meet his and Nathan hissed in pleasure.

Nathan grabbed the hem of Brooke's night-dress and pulled it off her body. Brooke laid back down topless and Nathan had never seen anything more beautiful. Here she was. Brooke Davis. Laying in his bed, topless, and on display for him. Nathan looked her over and savored every inch of her body. He reached out and grabbed her left breast and ran his finger over her nipple, which caused Brooke's hips to jerk forward again.

Nathan steadies her hips as he presses her down into the bed. He trails his hands up and down Brooke's thighs and it has Brooke aching with need.

"Please Nathan," Brooke breathed out.

"Please what?" Nathan teases as he pulls her panties down her legs and tosses them to the side.

"Please.. I need you." Brooke whispered, her voice raspy and hoarse.

"Patience, baby." Nathan whispered as he swirled his tongue around her nipples, his teeth gently nipping at them. His hands slides down Brooke's stomach and caresses her thighs, inching closer and closer to her hot and ready cunt.

Nathan finally reaches her pussy and gently slides his hand across it. Brooke moans softly, her hips wiggling from the anticipation. Nathan slips a finger inside Brooke and it caused Brooke to gasp. He fucks her with his finger, starting with just his middle finger. Then it's his index finger. Then his ring finger. Any by then, he's completely stretching her and he leans his head down to flicker his tongue against her clit as he continues to fuck her with his fingers. Brooke jerks her hips to meet each thrust of his fingers.

"Please, Nathan, please," Brooke begged.

"What do you want baby?"

"You. Please fuck me."

That's all she had to say. Nathan stood up from the bed and got completely naked. And in one swift move, he was back on the bed and used his knees push her thighs apart. Using a condom never crossed their minds, both far too eager to feel each other. Brooke reached in between her legs and grabbed Nathan's cock. She pumped it in her hand a few times before guiding it towards her center. Nathan slide into her slowly, both groaning at the pleasure. Nathan kissed her forehead as he began to move faster.

Brooke bit at Nathan's lips. Groaned against his mouth. She rocked her hips along with his. He kept thrusting deeper and deeper and finally, Brooke couldn't hold on any longer. The coil that was wound tightly inside her broke loose and her body began spasming out of control. Nathan slowed his thrusts as Brooke rode out her orgasm, kissing her gently on the lips. She looked into his eyes and saw nothing but love. Once her orgasm had washed over her, she jerked her hips forward, urging him to continue. Nathan wrapped his arms tightly around Brooke and quickly picked up the pace of his thrusts before he too reached his orgasm. Brooke held her legs tightly around his waist as she willingly milked every ounce of cum he was willing to give her.

"Fuck, Brooke." He panted against her neck before he placed a soft kiss there. He gently rolled off of Brooke and collapsed beside her.

"That was amazing," Nathan breathed out.

"No wonder we made that damn sex tape," Brooke giggled as she cuddled into Nathan's side. Nathan wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer, kissing the top of her head.

"Stay here with me. Don't go." Nathan whispered.

"I'll never leave you." They both knew that statement had a meaning that was deeper than the surface.

* * *

 **Soooo... what do you guys think? :) please review!**


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